Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu has unveiled the Renewed Hope Initiative, (RHI) N110 million empowerment package for elderly citizens and persons with disabilities.
The scheme will be implemented in the senatorial districts across the country.
The First Lady urged All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidates to oversee its implementation and ensure the funds reach vulnerable Nigerians.
The initiative, comprises two programs, each with a N55 million allocation, targeting 250 beneficiaries apiece.
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Under the RHI Economic Empowerment Program for Persons with Disabilities, 250 beneficiaries are expected to receive N200,000 each in each senatorial district.
The RHI Elderly Support Scheme will follow the same funding structure, with 250 elderly beneficiaries receiving N200,000 each per senatorial district.
Senator Oluremi Tinubu announced this at a stakeholders’ meeting involving the APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda; Senate President Godswill Akpabio; other APC members of the Senate; members of the RHI Governing Board; and APC senatorial candidates.
The First Lady said the decision to work through the senatorial candidates followed consultations with political leaders on how best to deliver the intervention to beneficiaries, improve coordination and ensure that the program achieves its intended purpose.
She explained that the initiative was designed to leverage the candidates’ familiarity with their constituencies to identify vulnerable people and facilitate the distribution of the assistance. She cautioned that the program must not be restricted to APC members.
“We don’t say give it only to party members, but give it to your voters,” She emphasised to the candidates to ensure that deserving people in their districts benefit from the intervention.
The First Lady said the intervention reflects her longstanding commitment to the welfare of vulnerable Nigerians, drawing on her experience in public service and empowerment initiatives during her 12 years in the Senate.
She explained that the RHI had previously supported persons with disabilities but was expanding its empowerment efforts to give them renewed assistance, while also stating that the intervention for elderly citizens has entered its 4th edition.
Mrs Tinubu said she had considered various approaches to delivering the funds, including working through state coordinators and traditional rulers, before consultations with political leaders led to the adoption of the senatorial district model.
The First Lady said the arrangement would also help raise awareness of the RHI’s programs and ensure that communities across the country are reached more effectively.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, commended the First Lady for bringing together serving and incoming Senators to coordinate the intervention, describing the meeting as an opportunity to strengthen the delivery of programs aimed at improving the lives of vulnerable Nigerians.
He said President Bola Tinubu had given his nod to the arrangement, and that the initiative was intended to extend assistance beyond party boundaries.
Senator Akpabio urged the candidates to treat the responsibility as a public trust and ensure that the support reached the elderly and persons with disabilities in their various constituencies.
The Senate President cited the First Lady’s commitment to women, children and elderly citizens, noting that her Renewed Hope Initiative had provided support to displaced communities, vulnerable households and women across the country in the last 3 years.
He also encouraged the candidates to work with other APC political office-seekers in their districts to broaden the program’s reach.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, commended the First Lady for her various empowerment programs and interventions across the country, saying the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) has reached 31 states with its monthly Food Outreach Program.
He described the engagement as historic and praised Senator Oluremi Tinubu’s commitment to the welfare of women and vulnerable Nigerians.
“On behalf of the House of Representatives, I want to say a big thank you to our mama for all the good things she is doing,” he said.
APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, commended the First Lady’s interventions, saying the RHI had reached vulnerable communities in states across the federation through food support, cash assistance and economic empowerment programs.
He urged the senatorial candidates to involve party structures and other relevant stakeholders in implementing the program, while ensuring that beneficiaries were selected without discrimination based on ethnicity, religion or political affiliation.
The meeting brought together the APC leadership, serving and incoming senators and members of the RHI Board of Trustees to coordinate the planned interventions for vulnerable Nigerians.
