Give us permanent employment, NPower volunteers beg Buhari

Sequel to media report of the planned disengagement of 500, 000 N-Power volunteers from the National Social Investment Scheme NSIP by the Federal Government, beneficiaries of the Scheme have taken to the social media to beg President Muhammadu Buhari to consider them for full employment as the current Nigerian economy in the face of ravaging deadly Coronavirus epidemic has no employment opportunity for them.

President Muhammadu Buhari

In an open letter to the President on Friday, the Volunteers, while praising the effort of the current administration for providing the NSIP platform to enable Nigerian graduates gain necessary on the job experience and skill, said that now is the time for the government to offer them permanent employment because they have been trained and acquire the necessary skill adding that going back to labour market is not the option for them.

The Scheme had earlier this week issued a Press Statement announcing an imminent disengagement of the Volunteers.

According to the spokesperson for Humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development ministry, Rhoda Iliya, their current engagement has contributed to “the administration’s vision of lifting 100 million people out of poverty by creating opportunities to enhance the productivity of the Nigerian youth.

"The programme has enrolled 500,000 beneficiaries thus far – 200,000 from Batch A which started in September 2016 and 300,000 from Batch B which kicked off in August 2018.

"Both Batches will soon be terminated according to the (press) release for the reasons given in the (press) release,” Salisu Na’inna Danbatta, the special adviser on media to the minister of humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development minister Sadiya Farouq told The Guardian on Monday. The statements were signed by Iliya.

Faced with imminent disengagement, the Volunteers appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to consider them for full employment as the current economic situation in the face of Coronavirus epidemic is not favourable.

It would be recalled that the Presidency had in September 2019 appealed to State governments to employ NPower volunteers as permanent workers, an appeal most of the State Governors have not considered.

In Edo State for example, where many of the schools lack teachers, the out-going governor whose tenure elapses in about four months from now has not employed any NPower volunteer.