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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
Former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has charged the National Assembly to publish report of its investigation on the N52 billion Special Works Programme for the 774 local government areas implemented by the Office of the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo.
Atiku, in a statement by Phrank Shaibu, also challenged Keyamo to make public his asset declaration form.
He recalled that in 2021, the Federal Government had in a bid to ameliorate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, approved the sum of N52billion for the hiring of 774,000 Nigerians across all the local government areas in the country for three months. He explained that under the Special Works Scheme, 774,000 Nigerians were hired to take on menial jobs such as clearing of drainages, sweeping of markets, cutting grass and other community services.
Atiku also recalled that the National Assembly had described the special works programme as a sham even as it questioned how the funds were spent.
Keyamo in the last two years has been defending the shambolic implementation of the programme.
Atiku who called for the minister’s probe by the EFCC said: “With his open confession that he has acquired houses in the US, I hereby call on the National Assembly to publish its report on the failed project. I also call on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately probe the finances of Festus Keyamo, who only became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) two years before becoming a minister.
“It is public record that Keyamo was an activist and a prosecutor for the EFCC, doing mostly pro-bono cases before taking public office. However, he now boasts of being a real estate mogul after becoming a minister. This is laughable and an insult to the sensibilities of Nigerians.”
Atiku said under Keyamo as Minister of State for Labour and Employment, the country has witnessed the highest level of unemployment, which KPMG says is about to hit 40 per cent.
“Under Keyamo, universities also witnessed prolonged strikes, as ASUU proceeded on 10 months strike in 2020 and eight months industrial action in 2021. Keyamo clearly failed as a minister, but grew wealthier in the process through his so-called real estate business. He thus needs to be investigated with immediate effect.”
Furthermore, he noted that since Keyamo had boasted many times about being an EFCC prosecutor and an anti-corruption champion, he ought to be bold enough to make his asset declaration forms public to prove that he was telling the truth.
“Keyamo has one month left on his tenure as minister, which means he will need to declare his assets before the CCB next month. Let him make public his asset declaration forms, before and after office,” Atiku said.
