The Senate on Wednesday rejected a
motion for the payment of N5, 000
monthly allowance to unemployed
youths in the country.
The motion was sponsored by Philip
Aduda (PDP, FCT) but was greeted with
shouts of “no, no” when he tried to
explain it.
Attempts by the Minority Leader,
Godswill Akpabio, to second the
motion were disrupted by the
rowdiness.
Intervening, President of the Senate,
Bukola Saraki, posed the question but
the senators responded along party
lines.
While Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
members yelled ‘’aye’’ in favour of the
motion, All Progressives Congress
(APC) senators, who were in majority,
rejected it.
However, a motion calling for the
probe of the utilisation of Subsidy
Reinvestment and Empowerment
Programme (SURE-P) funds by the
immediate past administration was
adopted by the senators.
The sponsor of the motion, Babajide
Omoworare, prayed that every naira
spent by the past government on SURE-
P and other poverty alleviation
programmes should be accounted for.
When the president of the Senate put
the question, it was supported with a
loud “aye” from the APC wing of the
chamber, with no dissenting voice
from the PDP side.
In his remarks, Mr. Saraki urged the senators to
take the issue of unemployment very seriously and
not play politics with it.
“We should stay above party line on this issue that
is so important. We have seen growth in the last
years but this has not translated to employment.
“Government alone cannot do it; the private sector
has a role to play and the enabling environment
must be created,” he said.
PDP leaders have lately called on President
Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling APC to fulfil
their campaign promise of paying N5, 000 to
unemployed Nigerian youth.
The motion on Wednesday is believed to have been
part of that call.
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