Femi Falana, SAN, a human rights lawyer, has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to probe the alleged diversion of N33.75 billion intended for cash transfers to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
In a statement issued on Sunday, urged the anti-graft agency to work with the Auditor-General for the Federation to recover the money and prosecute public officials found culpable.
The call followed a disclosure by the Auditor-General for the Federation, Shaakaa Chira, that the Federal Government could not provide sufficient evidence to auditors that N33.75bn in cash transfers intended for more than 3.29 million vulnerable households reached genuine beneficiaries.
The disclosure was contained in the Auditor-General’s 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance/Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government.
Falana said the development raised serious concerns about the management of funds intended to alleviate poverty and support vulnerable Nigerians.
He said, “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission should liaise with the Auditor-General of the Federation with a view to recovering the missing N33.75 billion. Furthermore, the EFCC should embark on an immediate investigation of the serious allegation of the criminal diversion of the sum of N33.75 billion in cash transfers earmarked for poor and vulnerable people in the country. All the characters involved in the shameful conduct should be arrested and prosecuted without any delay.”
The lawyer noted that the National Social Investment Programme Agency was established as a statutory agency under the National Social Investment Programme Agency Act 2022, enacted during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to him, the law empowered NSIPA to design social investment programmes, manage beneficiaries’ databases, strengthen payment and accountability systems and collaborate with state governments and development partners.
The Act provides for the implementation of programmes including N-Power, the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, National Cash Transfer, National Social Safety-Net, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme and the Grant for Vulnerable Groups.
However, Falana alleged that corruption involving some public officials had undermined the management of the programmes.
He recalled that the pioneer Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq, was investigated by the EFCC over alleged money laundering involving more than N37.1bn.
He further recalled that in April 2026, a Federal Capital Territory High Court issued an arrest warrant against Farouq and her former Permanent Secretary, Bashir Alkali, following their repeated failure to appear for arraignment.
Falana also referenced the scandal involving former Humanitarian Affairs Minister, Betta Edu, who was suspended in January 2024 after a leaked December 2023 memo directed the Accountant-General of the Federation to transfer N585m in public intervention funds into a private bank account.
The lawyer said the former Chief Executive Officer of NSIPA, Halima Shehu, was also suspended and questioned over alleged suspicious movement of funds.
He said the EFCC should conclude its investigation into the allegations involving Edu and Shehu so that the public could know the outcome. “By now, the EFCC ought to have concluded its investigation into the scandal to enable Betta Edu and Halima Shehu to know their fate,” he said.
Following the controversies surrounding the management of social investment funds, the Federal Government introduced tighter beneficiary-tracking mechanisms, including requirements for beneficiaries to link their profiles with their Bank Verification Numbers and National Identification Numbers.
The measures were also designed to eliminate ghost beneficiaries and improve accountability in the disbursement of social protection funds.
Falana, however, said the latest revelation by the Auditor-General showed that significant questions remained about the effectiveness of the systems put in place to track social investment funds. He also expressed concern over the planned implementation of a $3.05bn development package unveiled by President Bola Tinubu in July 2026.
According to him, the package, supported by the World Bank, is intended to deepen poverty reduction, strengthen human capital development and expand economic opportunities across the country. Falana said the Federal Government must ensure that the funds were not subjected to the same alleged abuses that had characterised previous social investment programmes.
He urged the government to establish an independent mechanism involving credible civil society organisations to oversee the disbursement of the funds to poor and vulnerable Nigerians. “Instead of allowing public officers to feast on the huge funds for poverty reduction in the land, the Federal Government should set up a body constituted by representatives of credible civil society organisations to disburse the $3.05bn package of development programmes to the poor and vulnerable people in the country,” he said.
Falana further claimed that the World Bank had concluded arrangements to withdraw the funds if the Federal Government failed to prevent officials from allegedly diverting resources meant for poverty reduction.
The latest controversy comes amid renewed efforts by the Federal Government and development partners to strengthen Nigeria’s social protection system and ensure that interventions reach intended beneficiaries.
The Auditor-General’s finding places fresh pressure on the government and anti-corruption agencies to establish what happened to the N33.75bn and determine whether the failure to account for the funds resulted from administrative weaknesses, fraud or criminal diversion.
