By Halimah Olamide
Amidst reports of a sum of N100m being given to each member of the House of Representatives for their constituents during the yuletide, the Lower chamber has said its members only got rice.
Akin Rotimi, member of the House who doubles as the spokesman of the House, said on Thursday that the viral video of a member from Etsako Federal Constituency claiming that each member got N100m and rice was not true.
The member, Dekeri Anamero, a member representing Etsako Federal Constituency, was reported to have said in a viral video that Tinubu gave each of them two trailers of rice.
The rice, according to him, is to be shared with their various constituencies across board, adding that at least each member got two trailers.
Rotimi, however, said that the Speaker of the House of Reps lobbied for it as additional palliatives for their constituents across the country.
This, he said, was handled by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, in line with existing public procurement laws.
According to him, the procurement process is at different stages, depending on the constituency, but to be clear, no legislator has been given any money for palliatives.
He said that, as politicians, members might be visible during the process of distribution and rightfully take credit for bringing succor to the people.
According to him, the procurement and distribution of the palliatives are being handled by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
He said that the 10th House of Representatives was the People’s House, and it would continue to engage and work to earn the trust of Nigerians as their elected representatives.