The National Coordinator, Concerned Advocates for Good Governance, CAGG, Barrister Olusegun Bamgbose, Esq, has warned of disaster if the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government fails to, as a matter of urgency, provide palliatives for the populace.
This is following the extension of the COVID-19 lockdown in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun States by the Federal Government on Monday.
He noted that the recent broadcast by President Buhari which extended the lockdown is not out of place, but insisted that there must be effective and pragmatic measures to alleviate the hardship this will bring, adding that “it would be disastrous” if things remain the way they are now.
“The present measure of cash conditional transfer is highly defective. In this time of technology, it’s absurd for anyone to be moving cash from one place to the other, sharing to the people,” the senior lawyer stated in a chat with Ireportnews on Wednesday.
He further advised the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management to come up with a page on Facebook and Twitter where it can reach out to people since most Nigerians are now involved in social media
“I’m aware that this also has some limitations, but at least, it will be transparent.
“The much I did with Burden Bearers on Facebook is yielding fruits. We have been able to reach out to a few Nigerians and they are happy. This is strongly advisable,” he added.
“The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs should come up with a Page on Social Media and reach out to the needy. It’s true that many in the villages may not have access to it, but that’s not a problem.
“We have been able to reach out to people who are not on Social Media through people on Social Media. We have a critical matter at hand and it’s expected that radical measures should be taken to tackle this matter.
“One will equally advise the President in conjunction with the State Governors, to come up with the Compassionate Millionaires Forum, CMF. Many rich Nigerians are willing to give but the Government is not really harnessing them.
“Officially, Nigeria has about 30,000 millionaires, but unofficially, we have more than 200,000 Nigerians who are Millionaires.
“If the Government is really Resourceful these people can be brought together to help alleviate the sufferings of the masses.
“The truth remains that this Government lacks the ability to really help the masses. There is no transparency in governance. They lack focus. The Government lacks direction.
“That’s not to say that they are not making moves, but they should be more pragmatic, Nigerians are suffering. The poor masses are groaning. Something urgent should be done. Crime rate is gradually increasing.
“The Government should wake up and rescue the suffering masses. Those in positions of authority should use their social media platform to reach out to the masses.
“The Government should also as a matter of urgency look at the possibility of coming up with an online loan scheme just like Pay later, Fair Money, Kudi etc, but the difference here will be that no interest will be charged. It could be pegged down to N5000 a week.
