The Human Rights, Liberty Access and Peace Defender’s Foundation has asked President Mohammadu Buhari to make open the amount of money received from international donor agencies, actors and non-state actors, indviduals, organiations locally and internationally during this COVID-19 pandemic.
The organiation said it has become pertinent and of paramount importance that all the funds raised for the prevention of the contagious coronavirus be made public in order to demonstrate in clear-cut terms his administration’s anti-corruption crusade.
In a statement signed by HURIDE’s chairman, Board of Trustees in Anambra , Dede Uzor A Uzor, the rights group said that the openness in the donation received by the Federal Government has became imperative in the light of the inferno that burnt the Accountant General’s office in Abuja, where it was believed that the fire has connection with COVID-19.
In the same vein, the group asked the State Governors to make open the amount they have received so far in their respective States and how they spent the fund and commended the River State Governor for paying its unemployed citizens the sum of N35,000 and urged other state governors to emulate the good steps taken by the River State governor.
“This accountability is important so that the people will regain confidence in Governments which they have lost in our leaders.
HURIDE also charged both the Federal and State Governments to strive to cushion the effects of the lockdown on the citizens, saying that a lot of people have complained of hunger, suffering and poverty this period.
In many states of the Federation, the group said, there has been upsurge in crime and other unethical practices as a result of hunger.
“In other states citizens have staged demostration against shutting down without commensurate stimulus packages,” the group said.
The group said governments can suspend payment of rents, electricity bills, relax to the imposition of levies, suspension of payment of increased Value Added Tax (VAT) among other measures.
The human rights body asked both Federal and State Governments as well as private sectors to pay their workers as at when due at this lockdown period.
They decried a situation where employers of labour insist on no-work, no-pay, saying that such employers of labour should be checkmated.
