The Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Tuesday, met with the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), behind closed doors to discuss the implementation of the National Social Investment Programme amid the coronavirus pandemic.
This comes days after a clash between the National Assembly and the Special Adviser to the President on Social Investment Programme, Maryam Uwais, over the need for a reform of the process of implementing the programme.
Lawan, who spoke to journalists after the meeting at the State House in Abuja, reiterated the call for reforms in the social investment initiatives, saying it was the right time to evaluate its progress since its introduction in 2016.
He said, “This afternoon, we had an engagement with Mr President to discuss with him what we, the leadership of the National Assembly, have resolved and our opinion on various issues regarding the fight against COVID-19 in Nigeria and going forward.
“We also believe that it is time to reform the way and manner we implement the Social Investment Programme. This is a very important programme that is to help Nigerians who are poor and vulnerable.
“We believe that, having implemented this programme from 2016 to date, we should be reviewing to see and evaluate the efficacy and efficiency with which we have been implementing this programme.”
