N1.3bn power fund: How trainees spent six months without stipends

Despite the budgeting of N1.3billion to flag off the National Power Sector Apprenticeship Scheme (NAPSAS) last November, most of the 7,400 trainees completed the six months training in July without their N18,000 monthly stipends.

The apprentices under the just concluded phase one of NAPSAS are now demanding a probe into the non-payment of their allowances since February 2015 from the alleged ‘N3.6billion budgeted’ for the scheme.

In a letter addressed to the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Abuja, some apprentices called for a thorough investigation into how ‘the sum of N3.6 billion budgeted for the Federal Ministry of Power, NAPSAS and the National Power Training Institute (NAPTIN), was spent.’

They mentioned parties responsible for the funds handling to include the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Godknows Igali, the NAPSAS Coordinator, Mrs. Sibil Williams and the Director General of NAPTIN, Engineer Reuben Okeke.

The federal government had in November 2014 pledged to train the 7,400 apprentices in various fields in the power sector within six months to bridge the gap in power artisans and nonengineering jobs in the private-led Generation companies (Gencos), Distribution companies (Discos) and the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

Although the training did not start till February, some of the trainees who spoke with Daily Trust including Abubukar Madugu from Kaduna state, and David Garba in Abuja said while some of them received a stipend of N18,000 for February, nothing had been paid to any of them afterwards.

Dr. Godknows Igali who had visited over 800 trainees camped at the Public Service Institute in Abuja late in May 2015 said there was an understanding with the companies where they would be posted for handson experience to employ them after the training.

Daily Trust reports that the trainees at the time complained that their N18,000 monthly stipends was not paid since the month of March alongside the challenge of inadequate accommodation facilities.

Igali had said there was a delay in paying the allowances but assured that stipends for the month of March and April paid the next week (May ending) just as he noted that government had masked some trainees who only came for the allowance but hardly engaged in the training process.

More than three months after, the trainees are still whipping same complaints as most of them who spoke to our reporters said they have completed the six months training with no stipends paid to them. They also accused the NAPSAS handlers of deception as the hands-on experience in power companies they promised didn’t happen.

In a reaction, NAPTIN’s spokesman, Lawal Umar Muhammad said the institute only handled the training aspect of the programme and not the payment of trainees. He said the payment and other financial matters was strictly the responsibility of the ministry of power.

While Mrs. Williams, Coordinator of the scheme could not be physically reached, her mobile line too has since refused to connect in our efforts to get her side of the story.

But the ministry responding to Daily Trust said the claims from the trainees are not factual. Its spokesman, Timothy Oyedeji said the amount approved was N1,323,200,000 an approximate figure of N1.3billion which he said was not fully released due to ‘budgetary constraints’.

“Even at that, the approved sum is a far cry from the alleged N3.6 billion purported embezzled by the Ministry of Power officials,” Oyedeji noted.

In the breakdown, the ministry said it paid in full for the training design module cost to NAPTIN and the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) while N340million was released for the nation-wide exercise.

The ministry said those who attended lectures and wrote the final examination were captured in the Audit trail and “are getting paid as money has now been made available to the Ministry. Already quite a substantial number of trainees have been paid or about to be paid as the exercise is an ongoing one.”

Oyedeji said 675 of the trainees have been engaged in the Generation, Transmission and Distribution value chain, dismissing report that no trainee has been engaged.