A pressure group, women coalition for sustainable peace and viable democratic gains in Bauchi State has appealed to the Bauchi State governor, Senator Bala Mohammed Abdulkadir and the anti-graft agencies to compel the Bauchi State Agency for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, BASOVCA that distributed the relief assistance donated to orphans by International Islamic Relief Organization, a Saudi NGO to return the five percent it removed from the orphans money.
Spokesperson of the group Fatima Umar made the plea yesterday in Bauchi when members of the group visited the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists NUJ Bauchi state.
Fatima said her group received series of complaints from the beneficiaries that five percent was removed from the money meant to support their education, while many still complained that their names are missing.
The group said it has received concerns from the beneficiaries that there were discrepancies in the earlier approved assistance as beneficiaries receive different amount.
Fatima alleged that initiators of the assistance who are Angarar Yuguda and Support Initiative for Vulnerable Children SIVWoC, a non-governmental organization headed by a Philanthropist Hajiya Baheejah Mahmood since 2007 were sidelined by BASOVCA without any genuine and cogent reason.
She said sidelining the initiators of the project was the reason BASOVCA could not locate all the beneficiaries.
She appealed to anti-graft agencies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences, ICPC to intervened and investigate the distribution of the orphan’s money.
She said the graft agencies should immediately compel the agency that removed the 13% and 5% from the orphans’ money to return it.
Fatima queried why an agency meant for orphans will remove money meant for them; “the money is not state government money why would the agency use the contribution for the orphans to cater for logistics and so called charges? She queried
The State Chairman of BASOVCA Mrs Hassana Arkila during the distribution explained that the five percent removed from the orphans’ money was to help the agency search for the remaining orphans that were not traced.
WikkiTimes reports that Hajiya Baheejah filed a suit before Bauchi State High Court over the deduction of 13 percent by the immediate past administration, a case that is still pending.
