Aishatu Mohammed, wife of Bauchi Governor, Bala Mohammed, has been criticised on social media for distributing packs of sachet water as relief materials to rural women in Futuk Community of Alkaleri Local Government Area.
The materials were distributed at the empowerment programme, which held on Thursday.
Although items like pasta making machines, flour, N5000 given to about 250 women during the event, many critised the sharing of packs of sachet water as part of the empowerment.
The items were said to be distributed under the First Lady’s pet project “Almuhibbah Foundation”.
Several social media users blasted the First Lady when the picture made its way into the internet.
In the pictures shared, the women could be seen standing on queues to receive packs of sachet water placed on the floor.
A facebook user, Oyedokun Oladayo, said: ” This is total nonsense, not even with freezer oooo. So what’s the cost of the pure water that’s not up to hundred bags and you called this empowerment . May God help us.”
Musa Dalhatu wrote: ” This is absurd. How much will it cost these women to transport heavy packs of pure water to their respective destination?
”It surely must cost them more than the value of the water for some of them that came from a distance . Why are we like this?”
Okekemi Adewale Adediran, in her post, said: ”Tomorrow now they will tell us that it’s 100 million that was used to purchase those sachet bags.”
Aninta Judith posted: ”This is the type of things we receive from the people whom we sold our dreams to. This is really shameful. Can you imagine this as a First Lady of Bauchi State saving business empowerment programme.”
But in swift reaction, Chief Press Secretary to the First Lady, Murjanatu Maidawa, said the pure water pictures posted online were released by mischief makers to put her principal in bad light.
She added the publishers of the malicious pictures chose to highlight only the sachet water distribution to score comical points.
Miadawa, who spoke to The Nation on Friday, stated that pasta making machines , flour and N5000 cash were also given to the beneficiaries who were about 250 were the empowerment programme as start- ups capital.
The CPS added that the pure water bags were not given as relief materials but only distributed to those who attended the empowerment programme and were not part of the beneficiaries for them not to go back home empty handed.
She stated her principal gave out 20 bags of pure water to 20 people which include both men and women ,to sell at home and not to hawk on the streets , in order to provide for their family while N5000 was shared across board to 250 women, who were beneficiaries of the empowerment programme.
