MURIC SEEKS SPECIAL WELFARE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS

23^rd June 2017

SALAH MESSAGE:

MURIC SEEKS SPECIAL WELFARE FOR SENIOR CITIZENS

The month of Ramadan is gradually grinding to a halt and Nigerian Muslims are warming up to join fellow faithfuls across the globe in marking Id al-Fitr.    

The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) felicitates with the head of all Nigerian Muslims, the Sultan of Sokoto and President General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammad Sa‘ad Abubakar III, all heads of   Islamic organizations in the country and the Nigerian people in general.

We seize the opportunity of the successful completion of Ramadan to show our appreciation to the Federal Government (FG) for identifying with the Nigerian people in their hour of need. In particular, we note with pleasure that FG has kept its promise on the provision of jobs and stipends for the youths through the introduction of N-Power from which about 200,000 youths have benefitted and are receiving N30,000 monthly.

Equally gratifying is the revelation that about 1,051,000 pupils are now benefitting from the Home Grown School Feeding programme (HGSFP) in 8,587 schools in seven states across the country. No less reassuring is the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programme from which 26,942 poor Nigerians have been receiving N5,000 monthly stipend.

While we applaud these humanitarian and welfaristic programmes, we call FG’s attention to the plight of senior citizens throughout Nigeria. These are elderly and retired men and women who have devoted the most productive part of their lives to serve this country. They should not be treated like ordinary oranges whose delicious juice is squeezed and sucked while the useless peel is thrown away.

We call for a special welfare package for senior citizens from the age of sixty (60) and above in the following areas:

1.  One free meal per day;

2.  Special free buses at designated places and times and

3.  Free medical care.  

SET THE 54 SOLDIERS FREE:

       

MURIC is sending a special appeal to the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo to set the 54 soldiers free. These were soldiers whose insistence on the supply of effective weapons to fight Boko Haram insurgents sparked off the $2.1 billion arms investigation. They have been languishing in jail for the past two years for exposing a fraud of monumental proportion in the army.  

They are different from the twelve (12) soldiers who fired shots at their commander. FG must separate the wheat from the chaff. We must not treat heroes like rebels and mutineers.

Finally, we appeal to Nigerians, particularly those who have just completed the Ramadan fasting, to continue to pray for the quick recovery of President Muhammadu Buhari and our dear country Nigeria with peace, unity and prosperity as prayer points.  

Professor Ishaq Akintola,
Director,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)