Release N15bn Amnesty Programme Fund, Senate Tells Minister

The Nigerian Senate yesterday directed the Minister of Finance to release the sum of N15 Billion (fifteen Billion Naira) balance in the 2016 appropriation Act for further funding of the Amnesty Programme for Niger Delta ex militants .
The Senate has also mandated it’s committee on Niger Delta to investigate the circumstances leading to funding constraints currently destabilizing the Amnesty programme with a view to avoiding re-occurrence.
These resolutions of the upper chamber followed a Motion titled: “The monumental challenges facing the amnesty programme due to Paucity of funds” sponsored by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi representing Delta North in the upper Chambers.
Senator Nwaoboshi in the motion raised issues of serious concerns currently besieging the presidential Amnesty Programme leading to huge debt burdens and uncertainty of the future of the program and the beneficiaries .
According to him the program is already being marred by delayed funding or staggered release of funds by the ministry of finance as captured in the 2016 Budget.
The motion raised concerns that the financial challenges facing the programme is already threatening the ‘well conceived Amnesty Programme,’ and its objectives
According to Senator Nwaoboshi about thirty thousand beneficiaries of the N65,000 , Monthly allowances are being owed 5 months in arrears among other backlog of unpaid debts for the education and training aspects of the programme both home and abroad.
Details from the Motion moved by Nwaobushi indicates that the fund appropriated in the 2016 budget for the Amnesty programme was about N20 billion  ýwith an additional supplementary appropriation of N35 Billion Naira in late 2016, adding that the sum of fourty Billion has soo far been released by the Finance Ministry leaving a balance of the sum of N15 billion.
His words “educational programme (offshore) is suffering the same fate as unpaid in-training allowances for 750 students between 2016 and 2017 amounted to US$4, 200, 000 equivalent of N1, 332, 000, 000 and unpaid tuition fee for 350 students amounting to. the sum of US$17, 500, 000 equivalent of N512, 500, 000
”If the planned protest by students in United Kingdom to the Nigerian High Commission is carried out over the nonpayment of tuition fees and allowances, it would bring Nigeria to ridicule and opprobrium before the comity of nations”,
The Senate also acknowledged the fact that there is a need to act fast because the situation is fast creating further tension in the already volatile region of the Niger Delta
The Senate equally expressed worry as the said tension ýand threats are capable of bringing the Nigerian government into disrepute nationally and internationally.-
Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki said the N35billion supplementary budget was approved by the upper legislative chamber to address the financial challenges faced by the amnesty office and to ensure peace in the Niger Delta region.
The committee on Niger Delta was also mandated to investigate cases of impersonation, and  an alleged low representation of some other states like Abia.
The Committee is expected to report  report back to the Senate in two weeks.

Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi