S/East Group Warns FG Against Misappropriation Of COVID-19 Funds

The South-East coordinator of All Citizens’ Action Movement and founder of Grassroots Movement for Social Change, Nze Kanayo Chukwumezie, Thursday, warned governments to ensure that funds donated by individuals and corporate bodies towards the fight against
Corvid-19 were properly deployed in fighting the scourge and alleviating the sufferings Nigerians currently pass through because of the virus.

Speaking with THE WHISTLER in Enugu, Nze Chukwumezie said the call
became necessary because of the attendant effects of the pandemic, such as closure of people’s businesses and cost of goods and services in the country. He further called on fund donors to also channel palliatives to core villagers who may not benefit from
government disbursements.

According to him, “I challenge people donating funds to federal and
state governments over this pandemic to rather direct or replicate
same at various villages by buying staple foodstuffs and distributing
to families directly. They should also give them some cash to assist
in their wellbeing. Let them stop donating to governments that will
still end up misappropriating the funds.”

He called for independent investigations into how Nigerians in rural areas have
benefitted from various palliatives being distributed by governments
to cushion the effects of the pandemic, stating that, “Ask yourselves
how many people in your villages got the billions and trillions of
naira the federal government has so far disbursed from our treasury?
Nobody knows your village more than you do. Stop financing government
financial recklessness and take your funds to your villages. You
should also help people where you live or anywhere that you know that
needs help.”

He further tasked governments at all levels to review and cut down
their extraordinary huge costs of governance with immediate effect,
and channel the saved funds into alleviating the plights of the needy.

He argued that, “In a situation where less than 10% of the population
take over 70% of the funds, leaving a paltry 30% to the 90% of the
population is an ill-wind. My take is that nothing good will reach the
people at the grassroots who these funds are supposed to be used to
support.”