PUNCH
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to launch a full-blown investigation into the finances of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
Tinubu handed down the directive in a statement on Monday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, who also announced the suspension of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, over the N585m scandal in the ministry.
The statement was titled ‘President Tinubu suspends Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation from office.’
Edu’s suspension was happening as her predecessor, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, was grilled for about 12 hours by the EFCC detectives over the ongoing probe into the N37.1bn allegedly laundered during her tenure in office, through a contractor, James Okwete.
The ex-minister was questioned from 11am to 11pm by investigators seeking information on how the huge sum was allegedly laundered by top officials who served under her.
Data from the Budget Office indicate that the ministry, erstwhile known as Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, had a N2.38tn budget from 2020 to 2024.
In compliance with the presidential directive, the EFCC has also summoned Edu to appear before its detectives on Tuesday (today).
Ngelale in the statement said the President directed the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, to conduct a thorough investigation into all aspects of the financial transactions involving the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, as well as the agencies under it.
Furthermore, the President tasked a panel headed by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, to conduct a comprehensive diagnostic of the financial architecture and framework of the social investment programmes.
This was aimed at reforming the relevant institutions and programmes in a determined bid to eliminate all institutional frailties for the exclusive benefit of disadvantaged households and win back lost public confidence in the initiative.
Edu suspended
The statement read, “In line with his avowed commitment to upholding the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability in the management of the commonwealth of Nigerians, President Bola Tinubu suspends the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, from office with immediate effect.
“The suspended minister is hereby directed to hand over to the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, and she is further directed by the President to fully cooperate with the investigating authorities as they conduct their investigation.
“Furthermore, the President has tasked a panel headed by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance to, among other functions, conduct a comprehensive diagnostic on the financial architecture and framework of the social investment programmes with a view to conclusively reforming the relevant institutions and programmes in a determined bid to eliminate all institutional frailties for the exclusive benefit of disadvantaged households and win back lost public confidence in the initiative. These directives of the President take immediate effect.’’
The scandal involving Edu burst open after a leaked memo revealed that the suspended minister directed the Accountant-General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, to transfer N585m to a private account owned by one Oniyelu Bridget, who the ministry claimed currently serves as the Project Accountant, Grants for Vulnerable Groups.
The minister had claimed that the N585m payment was meant for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states, describing the allegations against her as baseless.
The Media Assistant to the minister, Rasheed Olarewaju, said in a statement that it was legal within the civil service for such payments to be made into private accounts of staff members, especially project accountants.
Unimpressed by her defence, several groups and individuals including the Peoples Democratic Party, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Femi Falana, SAN; the Yoruba Youth Assembly, and other civil society groups had demanded Edu’s suspension and an unfettered probe of the leaked memo.
In deference to public pressure, the President suspended Edu and directed her to hand over to the permanent secretary in the ministry.
Consequently, the anti-graft agency on Monday, directed the suspended minister to report at its Jabi, Abuja headquarters on Tuesday (today) for questioning.
Confirming the development in a telephone interview with our correspondent, a senior EFCC official said, “Betta Edu has been mandated to report to the commission tomorrow (today).”
The suspended minister did not respond to calls and a message seeking her reaction to her suspension by the President. Also, her media aide, Olarewaju did not respond to calls and a message sent to his phone.
In a curious development, moves by the suspended minister to see Tinubu hours after her suspension failed as she was denied entry by the security personnel at the Presidential Villa.
Minister barred
The incident which was captured by the TVC News showed the minister’s vehicle being denied access to the State House.
Her convoy was asked to turn back as the security operatives refused to let her into the Presidential Villa.
A source revealed that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission had between July and August 2023, intercepted N32bn which was about to be stolen from the humanitarian affairs ministry.
The money was handed over to the Federal Government.
Sources said the immediate past minister in the ministry, Umar-Farouq, who had a marathon session with investigators over the N37bn money laundering allegation, was still being questioned at 7pm on Monday.
The former minister had tweeted about her presence at the EFCC headquarters, Jabi, Abuja, at about 10.20am.
“I have, at my behest, arrived at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to honour the invitation by the anti-graft agency to offer clarifications in respect of some issues that the commission is investigating,” Umar-Farouq tweeted.
Citing health challenges, she had earlier officially written to the EFCC to seek an extension of the deadline to meet with EFCC interrogators to give an account of the alleged monumental fraud that took place under her watch.
Meanwhile, checks by The PUNCH revealed that the total budgetary allocation to the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation from 2020 to 2024, is N2.38tn, according to data from the budget office.
Former President Buhari created the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development on August 21, 2019.
However, after President Tinubu took over in May 2023, the name was changed to the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
