Questions remain over the ongoing financial corruption scandal involving the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation. According to new disclosures, Minister Betta Edu may have transferred N585,198,500.00 into a personal account.
According to a circulating document that was allegedly signed by Edu and sent to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Minister instructed that Oniyelu Bridget receive the previously specified sum.
The payment, which was meant for vulnerable populations in the states of Lagos, Ogun, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom, was credited to Oniyelu’s account, the document also reveals. Rasheed Zubair, the Minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, defended the transaction in response to these accusations.
NSIPA Scandal: Betta Edu Speaks On Alleged N3 Billion Diversion
Zubair claimed that the N585.198 million payment followed the law, highlighting that it was given to vulnerable populations in the states of Lagos, Ogun, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom.
He explained that Oniyelu Bridget received the payment because she is currently the Project Accountant for Grants for Vulnerable Groups.
“For the avoidance, the said N585m was approved, and it is meant to implement grants to vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states.
“We must note that GVG was first launched in Kogi State, where recipients testified. Akwa Ibom and Cross River were launched in December 2023. Kogi already happened in November, and others will be launched in the coming weeks.
“The general public is invited to note that the Renewed Hope Grant for Vulnerable Groups is one of the social intervention schemes of the Federal Government, which the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation is implementing.
UPDATE: EFCC Freezes N30 Billion Moved From NSIPA Accounts
“Oniyelu Bridget is the Project Accountant for GVG from the Department of Finance, and it is legal in civil service for a staff, the project accountant, to be paid, use the same funds legally and retire the same with all receipts and evidence after the project or programme is completed”, he stated.
Meanwhile, the events that were transpiring created a stir on social media, leaving Nigerians puzzled over the transfer of a significant portion of the Federal Government’s funds to a private individual’s account.
According to information obtained by Anaedoonline.ng, the public sector’s 2009 financial standards expressly prohibit the transfer of public funds to an individual’s private account.
Section 713 of the law states, “Personal money shall in no circumstances be paid into a government bank account, nor shall any public money be paid into a private bank account. An officer who pays public money into a private account is deemed to have done so with fraudulent intention.”
Halima Shehu, the National Coordinator of the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), was suspended by Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu just four days earlier, on the grounds that there had been suspected money fraud inside the organisation under Edu.
EFCC Seizes Control of NSIPA Abuja Office, Detains CEO, Staff
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) then detained and questioned Shehu in relation to an alleged N44 billion fraud.
The EFCC decided to freeze N30 billion that had been moved from NSIPA’s accounts following a comprehensive investigation.
In a related event, the EFCC also called former Ministry Minister Sadiya Umar-Farouq to discuss a financial scam purportedly involving contractor James Okwete.
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