The senator representing Lagos Central on the platform of All
Progressives Congress, APC, Oluremi Tinubu, has described the 2016
budget allocation of N4 billion to the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs
and Social Development as inadequate, lamenting the sum would not cater
for the welfare of women who supported the governing party.
Senator Tinubu, the wife of a leader of the governing APC, made this
known during the debate on the general principles of the 2016 budget
proposal at a senate plenary in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to her, the allocation will not be adequate to meet the
yearnings and aspirations of the Nigerian women, who are looking up to
the APC-led government for succor in line with its change agenda.
“This budget is less than N4 billion and the capital is almost N3 billion.
“When you look at it what is left to do any work. I am laying this
case on behalf of the Nigerian women that this is not going to go well.
It is as if we have been used during the campaign.
“We say this is the government of change, that our change mantra is
supposed to change things across board, but what they allotted to the
Nigerian women is not encouraging.
“When we talk about change that doesn’t mean we are going to just be supporting what is not working.
“So the women are not just going to be used to campaign and several
promises are made to them. This budget is not telling anything and not
making any promises.
Mrs. Tinubu, who chairs the Senate Committee on Women Affairs, argued
that the N1 billion ear-marked for recurrent expenditure would hardly
cater for the empowerment programmes under the ministry.
“When we look at the functions of this ministry, we see that the
ministry is divided into two, human resources and capacity building,
economic services and women cooperatives.
“But when we look at the first division, which is the human resources
and capacity building, they are supposed to promote education,
development of women in the civil, political, socio-cultural, and
economic sectors.
“Also to promote motherhood women’s health especially maternal
mortality; and not only that, they are supposed to fund six zonal
political empowerment offices.
“Subventions and grants to NGOs, Nigerian women trust fund,
management of shelter for female victims of violence, 100 women lobby
groups, welfare support for indigent women,” she said.
Senator Tinubu, therefore, called on the Senate Committee on
Appropriation to increase the allocation considerably to enable the
ministry to meet its obligations to Nigerian women.
(NAN)
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