Reps kick over ₦187bn spent on FG School feeding programme

……….to audit programme for accountability

The House of Represtatives Committee on Public Accounts on Monday expressed serious reseration over the shopping sum of N186 billion reportedly expended  on the Federal Government’s School feeding programme by the National Conditional Cash Transfer Office (NICTO)  the coordinating office handling the project in the Presidency. 

The Chairman of the Committee  Hon Busayo Oluwole Oke and other members of the Committee while grilling the  National Coordinator of the School Feeding Programme Dr. Mrs Sinkaye Temitope and National Safety Net Coordinating Officer Mr Iowa Apera on the disbursement of the N64bn out of N186 billion said to have been so far spent on feeding the school pupils alone
expressed displeasure over the development, discribing  it as outrageous and unacceptable.

 Consequently, the Committee currently investigating the management and utilisation of the Presidential Task Force PTF on COVID-19 demanded a complete project audit of the programme immediately

The lawmakers were enraged by a document submitted to the committee which showed that the NICTO office received a credit of $400 million from the World Bank, $321 million from Abacha Restitution and another $400 million said to be balance from the government equity fund. 

But the National Coordinator told the lawmakers that the feeding programme had been on-going since 2016 when the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs initiated it and had so far gulped N186 billion in  totality. 

She further told the committee that the budget breakdown showed that N63.2 billion, N32.2 billion and N124.4 billion were spent by the office in 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively.

Other committee members including Honey. Chudi Momah (Anambra, APGA) and Hon. Miriam Onuoha (Imo, APC)  denounced the report saying that many schools and communities were yet to benefit from school feeding programme. 

Momah was visibly enraged  as it was documnted  that 200,000 pupils from different families had benefited  from it from Ihiala local council area of Anambra State which he refuted.   

 The Committe  Chairman Hon.Oke who also administered an oath to the National Coordinator also said that the Committee would look at the documents submitted adding that the funds mighty not have passed through appropriation by the parliament.