The federal government has announced the immediate dispatch of a total of 740 lorry loads of rice to the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to cushion the effect of food shortage across the country.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who made this disclosure on Monday to newsmen at the State House, Abuja, after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting also explained that the food supply is part of the President Bola Tinubu’s intervention to Nigerians, aimed at alleviating persisting food crisis.
Idris, who appealed to state governors to ensure an effective distribution of the food supply to reach the most vulnerable in the society explained further that each state, including the FCT took delivery of 20 trucks containing 1,200 bags of 25kg of rice.
According to the Minister, the President has directed the Minister of Agriculture to ensure that food is made available to Nigerians.
He explained that the distribution of trucks of rice was also to ensure that the hardship in the country is ameliorated, adding that it’s expected that the state governors will distribute the trucks of rice to the most vulnerable.
His words: “Now, the council deliberated on the state of affairs in Nigeria, especially the issue of food supply and shortage of food on the tables of many Nigerians and after exhaustive deliberation, the Minister of Agriculture had earlier been directed to ensure that food is being made available to Nigerians and the understanding is that about 20 trucks of rice has already been supplied to each of the states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory. Each of the trucks is carrying about 1,200 bags of kg rice.
“This is part of the measures that government is taking, in addition to so many others, to ensure that the hardship being experienced by Nigerians is drastically ameliorated.
“So for recap, each of the state governments has received 20 trucks of rice for onward distribution to the most vulnerable. This is a first step and the federal government will continue to support all the sub-nationals, so that the hardship being experienced by most Nigerians, in terms of shortage of food supply, is breached.
“It is expected that the state governors will go ahead to distribute this food item to the most vulnerable so that the hardship, like I said, being experienced will be brought down significantly”.
Commenting on the issue of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), the Minister said the matter was discussed at the FEC meeting based on the promise made by the federal government to Nigerians.
According to him: “The Federal Executive Council has directed the presidential Committee on CNG to expedite its activities to supply buses, to also make it possible for the conversion kits to be available to most Nigerians.
“Already they have started but the federal executive council asked them to redouble their effort. So that conversion kits that we need for the CNG to populate with is made available.
“Also the conversion centers that had earlier been approved will also be significantly upgraded so that Nigerians will have more conversion centers, more conversion kits. The compliance level of CNG, the federal government has directed this should go up, so as to reduce our over reliance on PMS. And this will in turn also aid our energy transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy.
“Now in all, the federal executive council took note of some of the complaints among Nigerians, some of the issues raised in terms of transportation, in terms of food prices or food shortages in many homes around the country and the federal executive council is ramping up all that needs to be done to ensure that food is being put on the table of most Nigerians.
“So what government is doing now is just a necessary first step to ensure that supplies are made available to Nigerians through the state governors. I have told you earlier that 20 trucks of rice already has reached the state governors. All the governors have already taken delivery of that.
“And the government will continue to work to ensure that food intervention is made available. This of course is an addition to the effort that government is making in terms of fertilizer supply which is already also being processed. Most of the governors will also have support.
“Recall that the Central Bank of Nigeria had earlier made available over 2.1 million bags of assorted fertilizer to the Ministry of Agriculture for onward distribution to the states. So that is also in progress.
“The federal government, will do everything they can to ensure that we have more food for our people, Investments in the agricultural sector is ramped up and you also know that the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development that was announced by Mr. President, also takes off very soon.
“So these are some of the measures and some of the discussions that we had at the federal executive council meeting today. We hope that council meeting also continue next week”, Idris said.
The Federal Executive Council also mandated the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Alhaji Abubakar Bagudu to come up with an amendment bill to the 2024 Budget to be presented to the National Assembly for legislation.
The planned amendment to the national budget, he explained, became necessary as a result of new fiscal developments, including the impending new national minimum wage.
According to the minister, President Tinubu is expected to hold a follow up meeting with leaders of the organised Labour this Thursday after which the proposed amendment bill to the budget would be passed on to the National Assembly for consideration.
President Tinubu had last Thursday met with the leadership of the organized labour over the minimum wage issue.
While the government team and the organized private sector had offered N62,000, the organized labour made a demand of N250,000.
Idris further explained: “Now, you are also aware that last week, the Nigerian Labour Congress met with Mr. President. This was part of the consultations that the President was doing, recall that he had met the organized private sector, he had also met the sub-nationals after the tripartite committee on labour submitted its report, in order to ensure that there is a thorough analysis of the situation, so the government will come up with a minimum wage that works for all Nigerians, the federal government, the sub-nationals and organized private sector. That was also discussed today.
“Government has also directed the Ministry of Budget to also come up with additional support for the 2024 Budget so that any differential or any gaps that will exist in terms of what existed before the 2024 Budget was approved and the Supplementary Budget and also what the requirement is for now.
“So government is working round the clock to ensure that it comes up with a minimum wage, like I said, that works for all Nigerians at the end of the day. This of course will be submitted to the National Assembly so that it can have legislative backing.
“Let me also say that the President is also open to meeting the Nigerian Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress and all the affiliates. We expect that meeting to hold this coming Thursday. Recall that this was already what the Labour unions requested during their meeting with Mr. President last week. So the President is in agreement, he knows that the Labour wants to quickly finalize this issue of minimum wage and government is also anxious to put the issue of minimum wage behind it.
“So it is expecting that the Nigerian Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress and all their affiliates, as requested by them last week, will meet the president on Thursday and after which the President will now transmit whatever the final agreements or what his views are on the tripartite committee’s report to the National Assembly for legislation”, Idris said.
When asked to shed more light on the proposed bill to be sent to the National Assembly with regards to the budget, he said “there has been talk about, some people are saying there’s multiple budgets and all that. It is not it is not the case and that is why the Minister of Budget has been asked to submit this additional information to the National Assembly to make it take an informed position on most of these.
“An amendment (act) to be sent to the National Assembly. Of course it is the tradition of the executive to allow the National Assembly to unveil some of these things and that is why we don’t want to go into further details. I’m sure the National Assembly, once it gets budget… they will do that. The executive is always respectful of the tradition of the National Assembly in terms of their protocol”.
On possible figures for the proposed new national minimum wage, Idris said there was no discussion around figures, explaining that the issues guiding the discussion are around the fact that whatever comes out as the final figures would have to be considerate of other salary paying entities, which has informed the President’s ongoing consultations.
He said: “I think it is the general parameters and the general principle of the minimum wage itself and like we have said here several, the federal government is not in opposition to wage increase. The President and the Federal Executive Council and the federal government are not in opposition to the concept of wage increase.
“The issue has been a wage increase that we can defend, meaning a wage increase that will not lead to inflation, a wage increase that not just the federal government, but the sub-nationals and the organized private sector, are able to pay and something that is also sustainable.
“Recall that the President also mentioned last week that because of the fact that he is not in opposition to the issue of wage increase, he has even asked that instead of waiting for a whole five years before wages are reviewed, he has mooted the idea that we can actually look at these wages between two to three years so that if there are gaps, we don’t have to wait for five years for those gaps to be closed.
“So the discussion was not around the figure itself, it’s about the general parameters and the general principle of the wage increase itself, which the government fully supports, but federal government will have to do something that not only it can carry, the sub-nationals and the organized private sector will also be able to go along.
“Recall that I’ve said it here that the issue of national minimum wage is not just that of the federal government; it is for the federal government, for the sub-nationals and for the organized private sector, therefore, every decision to be taken by the President will have to also take note of the sensibilities of the other parts that I talked about.
“So yes, there will be wage increase because there is already a proposal before the President, there is already a report before the President, the president is deepening his consultation and it is in that spirit that he met with the organized Labour last week and he’s also, as they requested, he will also meet with them on Thursday this week to finalize their thoughts and then he will make his informed position known to Nigerians by also sending this to the National Assembly”, the Information Minister further said.
Deji Elumoye in Abuja
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