By Ahmed Musa
THE NEW Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Prof. Nantawe Yilwatda, has promised to work with integrity and transparency and not to circumvent the functions of civil servants in the ministry.
Yilwatda gave the assurance on Monday in Abuja when he assumed office as the substantive minister of the ministry.
He took over eight months after the suspension of his predecessor, Betta Edu, over corruption allegations.
“I am here to find a family that we can work together to address the issues that are facing us as a country. We as a nation must recognise, identify, and come together to address poverty levels and humanitarian crises.
“In the university where I served as a director for 12 years, I know how the civil service works, and I will not circumvent civil servants or anybody’s function. I appeal to you, the permanent secretary and heads of agencies under the ministry, to give us that opportunity to work for the sake of the vulnerable Nigerians,” he said.
The minister stated that the ministry has a huge image deficit that must be addressed so as to regain the confidence of Nigerians and the international community.
He emphasised the need for members of staff of the ministry to give him maximum cooperation to redeem the image of the ministry in the eyes of the public.
“We must ensure transparency in our dealings, and part of upholding transparency is to ensure that most of our transactions are automated. And I am ready to work with all of you to achieve this target because that will encourage people to invest and have partnerships with the ministry to support what we are doing,” he said.
Yilwatda charged heads of agencies to redouble their efforts towards providing the necessary humanitarian assistance to the vulnerable Nigerians amid the government’s current economic reforms.
According to him, it is the ministry’s duty to give human face to the current reforms the government is undertaking.
“Some of the reforms are coming with their consequences, and it is our duty as humanitarian ministry to give human face to every policy of government. We must ensure that Nigerians do not feel the pressure of such policies because they are necessary reforms,” he explained.
Mr Abel Enitan, the Permanent Secretary, said the ministry has embarked on a deliberate retrospection in light of the bad image it has attracted in the past.
Enitan stated that it happened due to some certain avoidable systemic infractions.
“But conscious efforts have been made in the last 10 months to enthrone more firmly the culture of transparency and accountability in handling government business.
“I am pleased to report to you that this is already gaining traction,” he said.
The permanent secretary assured the new minister of workers’ determination to support them towards achieving their mandate.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Yilwatda arrived at the ministry’s conference room in company of Minister of State, Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Yusuf Sununu (NAN)
