The public statement by the Kaduna State government that about N4bn has been spent in its school feeding programme which has benefitted about 25,000 school pupils spread across the 23 local councils of the state in just one year has been described as unfortunate and unbelievable by the prominent civil Rights Advocacy group, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA). The group has charged the EFCC to suo moto invite the official to provide further and better details.

HURIWA which doubted the figures quoted in the media statement reportedly circulated in Abuja on Thursday and credited to the Special Assistant to Governor Uba Sani on the school feeding programme, Dr. Fauziya Buhari-Ado, has demanded from the Kaduna State governor what it calls clarity on how such a humongous amount was blown away in feeding 25, 000 school children in just under a year even as the Rights group wondered whether each pupil got a full cow each day for that period of time or whether it was continental or local dishes that were served that costs the kingly sum of public funds.

HURIWA recalled that the governor’s aide, Buhari-Ado in the statement, also promised that Almajiri children in the state would be given qualitative educational opportunities.

Buhari-Ado spoke while hosting some Islamic and underprivileged school pupils as part of the Eid el-Kabir Sallah celebration at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua Bilingual Primary School situated in Maraban Gonda, Sabongari local council of Kaduna State.

She noted that the school feeding has boosted school enrolment and retention as well as stimulated the local economy in the state.

She explained that the government decided to fete the pupils who combine both Western and Islamic education as part of an ongoing effort to ensure that children of the less privileged have access to quality education in the state.

Besides, HURIWA also demanded to know how many Christmas goats were slaughtered and shared to disadvantaged and indigent children from Christian homes last year’s Christmas or Easter just as the Rights group affirmed that the Kaduna state government could’ve redistributed the N4 billion to the family heads of the 25, 000 children for them to be economically empowered to set up viable businesses or vocational skilled jobs rather than adopt this ‘Money guzzling’ strategy that is opaque and lacks sufficient transparency and accountability.

HURIWA has asked for the identities of the 25, 000 beneficiaries to be published in a major newspaper together with the details of the condiments and kinds of foods served them that cost this humongous amount of public funds even as the Rights group faulted what it called ‘food is ready’ style of governance rather than put emphasis on productivity.

“Public office holders should stop insulting our sensibilities with stories that sound like fable that aren’t accompanied with explicit, open, verifiable details of how the sum total was arrived at. This is incredible.”

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