Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have said they will monitor the use of the N5bn approved for states to purchase grains and fertilizers for distribution to citizens to mitigate the adverse effects of petroleum subsidy removal.
Director General of Civil Society Organization on Community Advancement and Humanitarian Empowerment Initiative (CSCHEI), Kunle Yusuf, said they seek to use their coordinators in the states to supervise implementation to ensure that it reaches the target beneficiaries.
Speaking at the inauguration of the new executive management of the group in Abuja on Tuesday, he said over 40,000 registered Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in the country are ready to work with government for the implementation of the palliative initiative.
He said: “We have over 40,000 registered civil societies, NGO and community based organizations. This new establishment is saddled with the responsibility of committed enhancement and humanitarian empowerment.
“So it means that like we just said earlier, we are the bridge between the government and the masses, that is the core responsibility of the civil society.
“Now when you’re talking about the palliative of over N5bn that was just released by the government to help the masses. The only thing that civil society organizations could do is to be part of and to supervise the sharing of whatever the government is doing.
“So, we will supervise to ensure that it gets to the real masses. So, I am telling you that in every state we’ll try as much as possible to get involved in ensuring that whatever that is given should be spent judiciously.”
Yusuf also urged the federal government to listen to the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and meet their demands over the harsh economic realities in the country.
He said what the organized labour had done by calling for strike over harsh economic conditions amounts to ensuring checks and balances in the system.
“And this society, any country that there is no check and balance is more or less a banana republic. So, if NLC is presenting their case, and they are now protesting accordingly, the government has to look into it. Of course, civil society is also a part of it,” he said.
While calling on the federal government to act on their demands, he insisted that the CSOs will work with the NLC to see how succor can reach deserving Nigerians.
“This establishment is saddled with the responsibility of community enhancement and humanitarian empowerment.
“We have several civil society organization and NGOs that actually on labour, trade and stuff like that. So, we’ll work with them and also see how best to collaborate positively,” the Director General said.
