The BBC Hausa service is reporting that an alleged N100million cash given to parents of abducted Chibok girls by President Goodluck Jonathan after a meeting at the Presidential villa on July 22 has sparked disagreement between some of the parents and leaders of the Chibok community in Abuja.
Jonathan, the report said, approved the release of the funds to leaders of the community in Abuja for onward passage to parents of the kidnapped schoolgirls.
Like it was with similar presidential largesse in the past, some people have alleged that they were treated unfairly by those tasked with sharing the money.
“I got only N200,000 out of the said N100million allegedly received by our leaders in Abuja. Some of us got N300,000 and some less than that,” one parent, who was among those who visited the President told BBC’s Abdu Halilu.
He also said that he was not comfortable with the way the money was shared among the parents of the kidnapped girls and that he was short changed.
“Our leaders in Abuja are using the girls to enrich themselves. In fact, some of the parents were screened out of the entourage by the Chibok leaders in Abuja. Many of them were residents of Abuja, not parents of the kidnapped girls,” he said.
Parents who were screened out of the delegation that visited the President even got more ridiculous amounts.
“I was at the farm when they brought the N7,000 to my house and I collected it. Some of us got even less, N300 and below,” one of them said.
The parents stressed that they were not selling their daughters and that the money from the President just came to them without their asking for or expecting it.
One of the community leaders, Pobu Bitrus, who is also a member of the House of Representatives, was at the meeting with the president.
He explained to the BBC that after meeting with the president, monies were distributed to the parents in envelopes.
“After we met with the presidency, the parents were given monies in envelopes and that’s all. All other things they are saying about N100million, I don’t know about that,” Mr. Butrus said.
