The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Beta Edu, acknowledged the authenticity of a memo, in which she requested the transfer of N585.2 million from the National Social Investment office account to a private account belonging to an official in her ministry, Bridget Oniyelu. This transaction, revealed in the memo, violated Nigeria’s Financial Regulations 2009 designed to prevent fraud and corruption.
In her communication, Minister Edu stated that the funds were intended for the federal government’s poverty intervention project, Grants for Vulnerable Groups, targeting Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Lagos, and Ogun states. She specified allocations of N219.4 million to Akwa Ibom, N73.8 million to Cross River, N219.4 million to Lagos, and N72.4 million to Ogun.
The memo gained widespread attention on social media platform X, leading to Minister Edu’s trending status for the past two days. This revelation adds another layer of controversy to the existing EFCC investigation into the suspended National Coordinator of the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), Halima Shehu, for an alleged N37.1 billion fraud within the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
Mrs. Shehu had previously reported that over 1.5 million households received N20,000 through the Conditional Cash Transfer programme, but the recent fraud allegations cast a shadow over the government intervention initiative. Notably, Minister Edu’s predecessor, Sadiya Umar-Farouk, is also under EFCC investigation for alleged fraud.
In response to the leaked memo, Minister Edu, through her media aide, Rasheed Zubair, claimed that it was part of a plot to blackmail her. The statement emphasized the minister’s commitment to her duties, visiting various parts of the country to fulfill her mandate.
However, the minister’s response did not address crucial questions raised by the leaked memo:
- Minister Beta Edu, not being the ministry’s accounting officer, raises concerns about her authority to originate payment requests directly.
- Violation of Chapter Seven, Section 713 of Nigeria’s Financial Regulations 2009, which prohibits the payment of public money into private accounts and deems it as fraudulent.
- The substantial payment to a civil servant instead of directly disbursing funds electronically to beneficiaries raises accountability and transparency issues.
- The Minister of Finance is typically empowered to issue warrants for disbursement, yet Minister Beta Edu appears to be assuming this role.
- The initiation of payment requests for public funds by Edu, who is not the accounting officer, prompts questions about adherence to financial regulations.
- The involvement of Minister Edu in approving the transfer of funds from the National Social Investment Office account without the CEO’s input raises concerns about procedural irregularities.
These questions demand thorough investigation and clarification to ensure transparency, accountability, and adherence to established financial regulations within the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
