Reps to probe suspended school feeding programme

The house of representatives has resolved to probe the suspended school feeding programme.

The green chamber passed the resolution during the plenary on Thursday after the adoption of a motion sponsored by Muktar Zakari from Kaduna state.

On January 12, President Bola Tinubu suspended all programmes, including school feeding, administered by the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), as part of a probe into alleged irregularities in the management of the agency and its activities.

Earlier on January 2, Tinubu suspended Halima Shehu as the chief executive officer (CEO) of NSIPA over alleged financial malfeasance.

The president also suspended Betta Edu as minister of humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation on January 8. Edu’s ministry supervises the operations of the NSIPA.

The programmes affected include N-Power, the conditional cash transfer (CCT), the government enterprise and empowerment programme, and the home-grown school feeding initiative.

On March 13, the house of representatives asked the federal government to resume the implementation of the suspended social investment initiatives.

While moving the motion, Zakari said the objective of the school feeding programme was to encourage enrollment in public primary schools, address childhood hunger pangs, improve pupils’ ability to concentrate and learn and increase school attendance.

He said the suspension of the school feeding programme is “unsettling for several reasons, namely reduced school enrollment and attendance, compromised health and cognitive development of the children, and disruption of the income of smallholder farmers”.

The lawmaker said that while addressing the challenges of the programme is crucial, a complete suspension “may cause more harm”.

“Cancellation of the programme is causing an upsurge in the number of out-of-school children, posing a threat to the country’s future and leading to a high rate of crimes, insecurity, and unemployment,” he said.

The motion was adopted by the lawmakers when it was put to a voice vote by Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house.