FG Cancels Grants For Nigerian Youths, Gives Reasons

The federal government has disclosed that it is no more giving grants to Nigerian youths as a result of mismanagement and misappropriation noticed in the scheme.

It however added that revolving loans will be available for those interested.

The Minister of Youths and Sports Development, Sunday Dare made this known while speaking in Awka, the Anambra State capital at the end of a two-day workshop organised by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan in conjunction with the National Root Crops Research Institute Umudike/International Fund for Agricultural Development.

The workshop was titled “Challenges and opportunities for rural youth employment in Sub-Saharan Africa: A mixed-method study to inform policy and development programmes.”

The Minister lamented that most of the youths that get federal government grants end up wasting such funds on frivolities and are unable to account for how the money was used.

The Minister who was represented by an Assistant Director of Vocational Skills in the ministry, Adamu Usman Kaina added that the government after observing the trend, decided to stop giving grants but make revolving loans that will be paid back after some time available to interested persons.

He said: “With this, we have decided that there would be no more grants to the youths, instead they shall be given loans that they will repay after an agreed period so that others will benefit from the same scheme.”

He added that youths should stop seeing those in government as their enemies but should work on creating value and empowering themselves.

He said, “Lessons learnt from the nationwide #EndSARS protests showed that every young person believes that those in government are their enemies.

In other news, a human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN) has kicked against the shoot-on-sight order issued by President Muhammadu Buhari on persons found with AK-47 rifles.

Recall that Presidential Spokesman, Garba Shehu had said that President Buhari had directed security agencies to shoot anyone seen with AK-47 rifles in forests across the country.

But in an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday, Falana said such a directive should come from the president himself, and through a signed executive declaration.

He berated those commending the President for issuing a shoot-on-sight order, adding that without the necessary legal backing, the directive is useless.

The senior lawyer explained that existing laws require that those with illegal arms should be disarmed, arrested, prosecuted, and jailed if found guilty.