Minister of Finance Reveals Conflicting Figures on N75k Relief Fund Ahead of Cabinet Reshuffle

Amidst rumours of a potential Cabinet reshuffle by President Bola Tinubu due to underperformance, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has recently revealed conflicting figures regarding the N75,000 Presidential Conditional Direct Cash Transfer, putting him in a difficult position.

 

A report from Channels Television on Thursday noted that during an inter-ministerial press briefing, part of the activities marking Nigeria’s 64th Independence Anniversary, the Minister commended the Nigerian Government’s efforts in achieving long-term agricultural goals and making concerted efforts to reduce food importation.

 

In addition to his commendation, Minister Edun acknowledged that while the impact of the fuel subsidy removal has been tough on Nigerians, the government has embarked on several interventions to cushion the hardship, including the direct payment of N75,000 to 15 million households.

 

“According to him, just last week, 840,000 payments have already been made,” the report quoted Edun as saying.

 

However, the figure of 840,000 payments mentioned by the Minister has raised concerns, particularly in light of his earlier statement regarding the N75,000 to 15 million households.

 

A statistical analysis reveals that the 840,000 payments cited by the Minister could only cover 11 households—825,000 for the full amount, and an additional 15,000 payments equating to half a household to reach 840,000. Given that no household can be halved, this discrepancy raises doubts, which only the Minister can clarify.

 

It is important to note that after the removal of the fuel subsidy, as economic hardship deepened in Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu launched two palliative programmes aimed at alleviating the effects of the subsidy removal.

 

Under the initiative tagged the Federal Government Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme (PCGS), two major disbursements were announced: ₦50,000 to one million people, and N75,000 to 15 million households.

 

The Minister of Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite, who is responsible for overseeing the ₦50,000 grant scheme, stated in July that the programme had disbursed payments to approximately 60% of the one million applicants.

 

In June, Minister Edun announced that the government had resumed the payment of the Presidential Conditional Direct Cash Transfer to 15 million households to mitigate the effects of the fuel subsidy removal. He further explained that although the original target was 75 million people, the government had reduced the scope to 15 million households for reasons that were not disclosed.

 

This latest revelation of 840,000 payments being made has, therefore, only compounded the confusion surrounding the government’s disbursement figures.

 

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