There has been an outrage over an instruction by Betta Edu, minister of humanitarian affairs, to Oluwatoyin Sakirat Madein, the accountant-general of the federation, to transfer N585 million to the bank account of an individual.
The instruction for the payment is contained in a leaked letter dated December 20, 2023, seen by this newspaper.
The letter, signed by the minister, titled: “Mandate for Payment of Grant for Vulnerable Groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Lagos and Ogun State respectively”.
“I hereby approve the payment of the cumulative sum of N585,189,500. These are payments for programmes and activities of the Renewed Hope grant for Vulnerable Groups. Name: Oniyelu Bridget Mojisola, acct no: 2003682151,” Ms Edu wrote in a letter to Ms Madein on December 20.
“This payment should be made from the National Social Investment Office account with account number l; 0020208461037 to the project accountant’s details listed above,” she added.
The fact that money meant for distribution to impoverished residents in four states in the South-West and South-South geographical regions of the country was placed into a single individual account has increased worries that the money might not fulfil its intended purpose and was another channel to loot government funds.
Lagos state was marked to get the lion’s share of N219,462,250 and Akwa-Ibom the second largest share with N219,429,750, Cross River with N73,828,750, and Ogun with N72,468,750.
Rasheed Olanrewaju, an aide to the humanitarian minister, told The Gazette, “You are going to hear from us very, very soon”, without elaborating and then hung up the phone.
The diversion of such humongous funds into a private account has caused people to question the integrity of Ms Edu, who only assumed office six months ago.
An enquiry sent to the website of the Office of the Accountant-General was not immediately replied.
Sadiya Umar Farouq, the former humanitarian minister under the immediate past Muhammadu Buhari administration, is still under probe over the alleged embezzlement of N37.1 billion while she was in office.
Anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) waited in vain on Wednesday to question Ms Farouq, who was invited to answer pertinent queries about the dubious transactions.
Ms Farouq’s probe and unexplainable circumstance surrounding the intended N585 million transfer to an individual account are beginning to cast a pall on the humanitarian ministry and its nascent minister.
