The Ekiti State Government on Wednesday started the payment of N5,000 each to beneficiaries of its social welfare scheme.
The beneficiaries, drawn from various sections of the society, are 10,000 in number.
In a broadcast by the state governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose, in Ado-Ekiti, he said the money was being paid directly into the accounts of the beneficiaries.
A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi, quoted the Governor as saying the step was also a means of ameliorating the financial challenges being faced by the masses.
The governor gave the assurance that despite the economic downturn, his administration would find ways of helping the downtrodden to cope and live in some level of comfort.
He added that beneficiaries were chosen to cut across the physically-challenged, the albinos, visually-impaired, the aged among others.
The governor said no fewer than 6,000 beneficiaries had their accounts credited with the money on Wednesday, saying others would also have theirs.
He explained that by directly crediting the accounts of beneficiaries, the state was eliminating fraud and ensuring that the real beneficiaries got the money.
