Ex-NHIS boss Yusuf blames governors for hardship, says they ‘hide truth from Tinubu’

Usman Yusuf, former executive secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), has accused state governors of failing to tell President Bola Tinubu the truth about the hardship in Nigeria.

Speaking in an interview on Trust TV, the ex-NHIS boss said that governors are receiving more revenue under Tinubu’s government but the funds are not being used for development.

Yusuf said over 80 percent of the country’s challenges are caused by governors who have failed to utilise resources meant for their people.

“Mr President, if they are not telling you the truth, listen to me, I’m telling you the truth that there is hunger in the land,” he said.

“Whatever they are telling you is not true and your government is not doing anything at all to address this tragedy that is befalling our people in a country of plenty.”

Yusuf questioned the federal government’s conditional cash transfer programme, saying there is no evidence that the N419 billion reportedly disbursed has reached citizens.

“I heard one of the ministers said that they have given ₦419 billion conditional cash transfer. Hello, shouldn’t that number make you chuckle? Who did they give it to?” he asked.

“The President, everybody will commend you after the removal of subsidy, you have enough excess that you keep some in your pocket and you throw some at the governors.

“The governors have seen a lot more money but there is nothing to show on the ground.

“All they are doing is running around the world, building bridges and building houses all over the world when our people are dying of hunger.”

Yusuf noted that governors, not the presidency, are responsible for creating jobs, building schools, and funding healthcare at the grassroots level.

“Even during Buhari, I said over 80 percent of our problems in Nigeria all across the geopolitical zones are the governors,” he said.

“It’s not the central government that will provide employment locally to people, it’s the governors that have stifled the local governments all this time. It’s not the presidency that would build schools or hospitals.”

He said Tinubu’s effort to free local governments from governors’ control has achieved little, adding that state leaders still hold on tightly to funds.

“The governors are still holding onto their funds and we don’t see anything,” he said.

“We don’t just sit here in Abuja; we go home and see the sufferings of our people. The governors get a lot more money, we see them in SUVs, private jets, dancing ‘Omo Ologo’ as if all is well.”