The federal government has dismissed claims by critics who described the plan to feed school children at home as a scam. The Minister for Disaster Management, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, on Thursday, May 21, defended the federal government’s decision to spend #679 million on the programme, The Nation reports that Farouq, faulted the claims by the critics of the feeding programme by saying that feeding children at home are meant to check food insecurity and malnutrition.
Speaking in Lagos at the lunch of the feeding programme, the minister gave two cogent reasons why the feeding school children cannot be described as a scam. One of the reasons was that the initiative was recognised internationally. She said 16 other countries are still feeding children despite the closure of schools. Then, it is also to help check food insecurity and malnutrition while the children are at home.
Legit.ng had reported that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has said it is a huge scam for the federal government to claim it is still carrying out the school feeding programme when schools are shut due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The PDP spokesman, Kola Ologbondiyan in a statement on Thursday, May 14, alleged that some officials in Buhari’s government were trying to siphon #13.5 billion under the guise of feeding school children during the lockdown. The party insisted that the minister has failed to provide details of how she intends to reach the 9.7 million school children, who are now in their homes in different locations since the closure of schools.
