IBADAN- A former Nigeria’s ambassador to the Philippines, Dr Yemi Faronbi, and a lawmaker, Mr Abdulwaheed Akintayo, have called for use of data base in the distribution of palliatives to Nigerians by the Federal Government.
The duo stated this in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Ibadan, in apparent reaction to a recent statement credited to the Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdulrasheed Akanbi.
Oba Akanbi, had, while distributing grains and cash to the aged and the vulnerable in Iwo on April 1, said that traditional rulers were in the best position to be distributing palliatives to Nigerians on behalf of the federal government.
“Traditional rulers serve as a link between the government and the people,” he said, adding that many of the post-fuel subsidy removal interventions of the federal government were not being felt by the under-privileged.
Faronbi, however, said that the best option for government was to use data base in distributing palliatives rather than going through the traditional rulers.
“What those in authority should think of doing is working out a data base where all Nigerians, especially the poorest of the poor, can be captured and palliatives distributed to them accordingly,” he said.
Faronbi, a former General Manager of Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), Ibadan, however, said this should be a short term measure.
“The best the government should do is to make everyone productive in such a way that no one will be in need of palliatives.
“Organising palliatives should not be part of our culture; we are not beggars by nature.
“I feel that Oluwo believes that the traditional rulers know people in and out, but in a country as large as Nigeria, how many traditional rulers will government contact?
“Nigeria is a multi-ethnic society; from the North to the South; from the East and to the West. And so, the traditional means of distributing palliatives that works for a particular area may not be applicable to another,” he said.
In his own submission, Akintayo, a member of Oyo State House of Assembly, said that except there was a constitutional provision, it might not be possible for traditional rulers to distribute palliatives on behalf of government.
“Maybe Oluwo felt that certain things were not working properly and that traditional rulers might be the best to take up the responsibility.
“In Oyo State, the palliatives distributed recently were properly done, to the best of my knowledge, as there was no complaint from anybody,” he said.
Although the lawmaker said he was not, in any way, against traditional rulers assuming constitutional roles, he, however, stated that such roles must be deliberated upon, passed as a bill and assented to by the executive arm before it becomes operational.
Akintayo, who is the House Committee Chairman on Information, further stated that traditional rulers in the country had already been saddled with the responsibility of maintaining peace within their respective domains and that they were being rewarded for their efforts.
He also said that the traditional rulers in Oyo State were, on regular basis, being updated by government on how palliatives were being given to people in their areas. (NAN)