Umar Audu, the undercover reporter who succeeded in earning a university degree from Benin Republic, in as little vas six weeks, has asked the federal government to scrutinize all degrees that were issued to Nigerians from institutions in both Benin and Togo.

The government has said it is investigating the alleged racketeering of degrees from Benin but said nothing about the many fake degrees that could already be in circulation in the country.

It is also yet to officially speak on the extent its planned investigation will go and how it will liaise with affected universities in Benin Republic and Togo on the racketeering scandal unearthed by the undercover reporter from the Daily Nigerian Newspaper who still managed to register for the National Youth Service Corp after obtaining a degree in six weeks.

This is just as a professor at the University of Lagos, Victor Ariole, has called into question, the collective punishment of a large number of universities within the African region and the thousands of students currently enrolled in them.

Ariole said the government should instead single out the erring universities and students.

The undercover journalist, Umar Audu, said it is imperative for the government to conduct thorough investigations into all degrees awarded in the Benin Republic.

Audu, who spoke exclusively to LEADERSHIP Sunday yesterday, said some people earned their certificates legitimately, but most of them were obtained in a fraudulent manner.

It would be recalled that Audu, in an investigative report titled, ‘How Daily Nigerian reporter bagged Cotonou varsity degree in 6 weeks’, exposed a booming certificate racketeering syndicate in Benin Republic and Togo, that specialises in selling university degrees to willing buyers from Nigeria.

Speaking to our correspondent on what led him to go undercover, Audu said the issue of certificate racketeering is widespread in the Benin as many universities are offering fake degrees.

He also said that it is the responsibility of the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Federal Ministry of Education to evaluate and accredit these universities to eradicate the fraud.

“There is a need to investigate all degrees from the Benin Republic, but this doesn’t mean they are all not legitimate graduates. Some people earned their certificates legitimately, but most of them were obtained in a fraudulent manner.

“The issue is widespread; in our previous investigation, we identified over 15 universities that offer these kinds of degrees.

“It’s not the responsibility of the NYSC to evaluate and accredited universities. That responsibility lies in the hands of the NUC and Federal Ministry of Education.”

Speaking further, Audu said he had prior knowledge of degrees being bought in Cotonou before embarking on the investigative journey.

According to him “Daily Nigerian did an investigation on how Nigerians smuggle ‘tokumbo’ degrees from Cotonou in February 2018. So, this was like a follow-up,” he said.

Meanwhile, some experts have urged the government to investigate erring universities and punish specific individuals instead of generalising.

LEADERSHIP Sunday tried to reach out to the acting director of public affairs at the National Universities Commission, Haruna Lawal Aho on whether there are plans by the commission to set up an investigative panel considering how wide spread the racketeering appears to be widespread in Benin and Togo.

Ajo would only say that an enquiry has already been instituted by the federal ministry of education, and nothing else should be expected pending the outcome of that investigation.

He said, “The federal ministry of education made a statement on this issue a few days ago. An enquiry was already instituted.”

The National Youth Service Corp, on its part was reluctant to speak on steps it could take to reduce the opportunity for fake degree holders to register for the youth service.

LEADERSHIP Sunday could not get clarification from the NYSC spokesman, Eddy Megwa, on why Audu was able to register for a second time despite the fact that the use of the National Identification Number, which is unique to all individual citizens, is a requirement for all participants before registration.

A Professor of European Languages and Integration Studies, University of Lagos, Prof. Victor Ariole said suspending accreditation of degrees from Benin and Togo is ill-advised.

According to him, punishing over 15,000 students with the suspension of accreditation of degree certificates is collective punishment since the need to punish only those directly involved.

“There must be a selective process, go into their records, those who are found culpable bring them out and punish them, not because one person did something wrong and you punish everybody because you discovered one University or institution is creating a problem. It is not done, it’s against human rights,” he said.

NYSC Registration Steps For Foreign, Local Students Expounded

Following the release of an undercover report on express degrees awarded by mushroom universities in Cotonou, mixed reactions of shock and outrage have continued to trail across the country.

Although, the National Youth Service Corps, on its website said the data of all prospective corps members as submitted for mobilisation by their respective institutions, are subjected to screening for conformity, the spokesperson of the Scheme, Eddy Megwa did not respond when asked to throw more light on it.

LEADERSHIP Sunday, however, walks through the procedures of National NYSC registration for foreign and local students.

NYSC, which is a mandatory one-year service programme is for all Nigerian graduates of tertiary institutions.

However, graduates who have studied outside Nigeria and are interested in participating in the scheme must follow specific procedures and meet certain requirements, according to the scheme.

Requirements For Registration/Mobilization Of Foreign Students Graduates

On its website, NYSC specified that foreign students must register online on its portal (https://portal.nysc.org.ng/) during the designated registration period and create an account with their emails and phone number, providing their personal details, and upload scanned copies of the required documents.

Documents to be uploaded are; International passport showing entry visa, departure date, return date, and data page, original degree or HND certificate, complete official transcript of the degree or HND course, O’level certificate (WASC, GCE, SSCE, NECO, IGCE, GCSE, or high school diploma) showing credits in five subjects, including English and mathematics.

Others are evidence of completion of housemanship (for medical doctors and optometrists), evidence of completion of internship (for pharmacists), residence permit for the period of study (for graduates of universities within ECOWAS states and Cameroon).

After successful online registration, foreign students must attend the physical verification exercise at the designated NYSC camp and present the original copies of all uploaded documents for verification.

However, certificates and other credentials not written in English must be translated at the embassy of the country of study or a university in Nigeria where the language is studied before uploading and presentation for verification.

More so, foreign students are not allowed to choose their state of deployment. However, married women may be deployed to states where their husbands reside.

Meanwhile, graduates with dual nationality are required to upload data pages of both International Passports and present the same for verification at the physical verification Centre/Orientation camp (where more than one passports were used during the period of study.

In the event of loss of international passport, a prospective Corps Member is expected to obtain the following: Police and Immigration reports from the country where the Passport got missing, sworn affidavit from the court of law and other evidence of stay in the country of study, and a new International Passport (Personal Data page of the newly obtained International Passport must be uploaded).

For loss of academic credentials, the following are required: Detailed Police report, sworn affidavit from the Court of law, confirmation of result from either the examination body (for loss of O’Level certificates) or the institution of graduation (for loss of degree, HND, Certificates), personal Data page of the newly obtained International Passport must be uploaded

Requirements For Registration/Mobilisation Of Local Graduates

Prospective Corps members should ensure that they have functional e-mail addresses that they can access and Nigerian (GSM) telephone numbers with which to register.

They will use the Email address and password to login to the NYSC portal subsequently.

Locally trained prospective Corps members are expected to use correct Matriculation numbers to register and only those whose names appear in the Senate/Academic Board Approved Result lists submitted by their Institutions will have access to the register on the NYSC portal.

Anybody who presents any fake document will be demobilized and decamped and handed over to law enforcement agencies for prosecution.

They should also remember the fingers used for their biometric capturing as these will be used for verification at the orientation camps.

Those who cannot be verified with their biometric at the orientation camp will not be registered.

However, married female prospective corps members (whether locally or foreign-trained) should upload copies of their marriage Certificates, evidence of Change of name and their husbands’ place of domicile during registration.

The orientation camp is highly not ideal for pregnant and nursing mothers. Prospective corps members in these categories are therefore to note that they will not be accommodated.

The Chairman of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, on Saturday clarified the recent visit of officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to its Head Office in Lagos State.

Recall that officials of the EFCC visited the Dangote Group headquarters in Lagos on Thursday, to investigate forex allocations to the company during the tenure of Godwin Emefiele as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

However, days after the EFCC visit, Dangote Management, in a statement at the weekend explained that “the company received a letter from the EFCC in the first week of December 2023, requesting details of all the foreign exchange allocated to the company by the CBN from 2014 to the present.

The statement said, “We understand similar letters were sent to 51 other Groups of companies requesting for the same information spanning the same period.”

According to the statement, the company responded to the EFCC to acknowledge receipt of the letter whilst seeking clarification on the subsidiaries or companies within the Group that they required information on.

It said the company also requested additional time to compile and properly present the extensive documentation spanning ten years.

The statement partly read, “the EFCC did not provide the clarification sought and also did not honour our request for an extension and insisted on receiving the complete set of documents within the limited timeframe.”

“On 4 January 2024, our team delivered the first batch of documents to the EFCC. However, officers of the EFCC did not accept the documents, insisting on visiting our offices to collect the same set of documents directly.

“Whilst our representatives were still at the EFCC’s office to deliver the documents, a team of their officers proceeded to visit our offices to demand the same documents in a manner that appeared designed to cause us unwarranted embarrassment.”

It noted that no accusations of wrongdoing have been made against the company by the EFCC, adding that they are responding to a request for information to assist the anti-graft agency with their ongoing investigation.

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has threatened to sue President Bola Ahmed Tinubu if he fails to probe the alleged payment of N585,189,500.00 into a private account by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu.

Kolawole Oluwadare, Deputy Director of SERAP, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.

DAILY POST had reported that Betta Edu confirmed disbursing N585,189,500.00 meant for vulnerable people in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Lagos, and Ogun states into a private account.

However, Edu insisted that the payment followed due process.

Meanwhile, SERAP said that the minister’s action was against Chapter 7, Section 713 of the Federal Government’s Financial Regulations 2009, which notes, ‘Personal money shall in no circumstances be paid into a government bank account, nor shall any public money be paid into a private account’.

Accordingly, SERAP urged Tinubu to direct the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Lateef Fagbemi, and appropriate anti-corruption agencies to promptly and thoroughly conduct a probe.

“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest”.

Recall that Accountant-General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, said Edu was not supposed to make N585,198,500.00 into a private account.

The Super Eagles will play a friendly match against Guinea’s Syli Nationale in Abu Dhabi on Monday, according to a statement by Ademola Olajire, Director of Communications at the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

The statement, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Abuja, indicated that the friendly match was part of the Super Eagles’ preparation ahead of a feast of Guinean attrition in the group phase at the 34th Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals in Côte d’Ivoire.

“Head Coach José Peseiro has the opportunity to put to the crucible different patterns and tactics against quality opposition.

“The friendly game is coming only seven days before the three-time champions’ opening game against Equatorial Guinea’s Nzalang Nacional inside Abidjan’s Stade Alassane Ouattara,” it said.

NAN reports that the Super Eagles are in Group A of the four-week, 24-nation finals alongside host nation Cote d’Ivoire and Africa’s other two Guinean nations – Equatorial Guinea and Guinea Bissau.

The Syli Nationale was one of Africa’s strongest teams in the 1970s and 1980s, winning the silver medals at the 1976 AFCON in Ethiopia.

They gave the so-called big teams a good run for their money at the Africa Cup and in FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.

The Eagles pipped Syli Nationale 1-0 in a group phase encounter at the 2019 AFCON in Egypt.

Far back in 1981, Syli Nationale held the Eagles to a 1-1 draw in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Conakry, and in Lagos, Nigeria won with a long-range Henry Nwosu strike to the far corner of Abdoulaye Keita’s goal.

“Monday’s encounter has been scheduled for the Bani Yas Stadium.

“It is sure to slightly open a window into the mind of Coach Peseiro and how he intends to line up his army when Africa’s flagship football championship begins next weekend,” it added.

The 2023 AFCON which kicks off on Jan. 13 will end on Feb. 11. (NAN)

Nollywood actress Regina Daniels has revealed a hilarious conversation with her husband, Senator Ned Nwoko.

She disclosed that her husband had inquired if she would have married him if he was a mechanic, and at first, she was left stunned by his question.

However, she gave him a hilarious response, questioning where they would have met, wondering if it would be at his mechanic shop.

The thespian wrote on her Instagram page, “Small gist everyone: So my husband asked me one of the most asked questions he sees about our union. He said, ‘G, would you have actually married me if I was a mechanic?’

“I laughed. I really didn’t know the response I was to give, but my reply was ‘Where would you see me? When I come to fix a car?’

“Dim idiegwu.”

Recalls that Regina Daniels, who was 22 then, sparked mixed reactions when she tied the nuptial knot with a 61-year-old lawyer and former federal lawmaker, Ned Nwoko, in 2019.

The couple has since welcomed two children together.

The Ogun State Government has concluded arrangements to give out Annual Scholarship Award to 10,000 learners from primary education to tertiary level, so as to make education affordable and reduce out-of-school children.

Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Prof. Abayomi Arigbabu, made this known at Lisabi Grammar School, Abeokuta, during the 2nd Term Pre-resumption Stakeholders’ Meeting with Principals, Head-teachers, Association of Primary School Head Teachers of Nigeria (AOPSHON), Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Association of Primary School Teachers (AOPSTON), All Nigerian Confederation Of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS) and security agencies.

Prof. Arigbabu, in a statement made available to newsmen by Mr. Samuel Ogungbesan, Press Officer, MOES&T, explained that the Scholarship would be based on merit for indigent students, serve as a relief to parents and create an avenue for effective learning, adding that it was an opportunity for learners to benefit from the present administration’s free education policy and its commitment at rejigging the system.

He disclosed that the Ministry had put mechanisms in place to ensure adequate security of lives and property, as well as provision of 25,000 furniture to schools, promising that more would be distributed to secondary and primary schools across the state, to sustain qualitative, accessible and affordable education for the citizenry.

The Commissioner further hinted that government would soon hold an Education Summit, with the aim of proffering solutions to challenges confronting the education sector, launching of Education Trust Fund and digital lesson notes, among others.

"As we go into the new session, let us be more dedicated, show leadership by good example and complement government’s efforts by doing your bits", he said.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mrs. Abosede Ogunleye, appreciated the effort, support and cooperation of all education stakeholders, saying the meeting was to charge and re-strategise towards resumption, to achieve desired result.

Speaking, Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, Rtd. AIG, Olusola Subaru, encouraged parents and teachers to ensure proper monitoring and guidance of their wards to prevent them from engaging in nefarious activities that could become burdensome to the parent and society at large, pledging that security agencies in the state would continue to ensure that schools, teachers and learners were secured.

In their separate goodwill messages, representatives of Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency and So-safe Corps, DCP Sagir Ismail; DCC Amos Ajayi, Mr. Ekundayo Williams and ACC Maroof Yusuf, respectively, commended the seamless effort of the present administration in facilitating adequate machineries to secure lives and property of the citizenry, saying it is everybody’s business, just as parents, teachers and learners should think security first, be optimistic, vigilant, proactive and not hesitate to report any security issues to appropriate quarters.

Responding, Chairmen, AOPSHON, ASSUS and SUBEB, Mr. Dauda Sanusi, Dr. Oluwaseun Agbesanwa and Dr. Femi Majekodunmi, respectively, appreciated Governor Abiodun for putting workers’ welfare in the front burner, especially the recent End of Year Bonus for Civil Servants, pledging their continuous support and cooperation with government to further develop the education sector.

...Yakubu, Uhomoibhi ask for more time

... Joefel absent

The Edo Central PDP Special Committee has adjourned the screening of the governorship aspirants from the Senatorial zone scheduled for today to Wednesday 10th of January, 2024. This was one of the significant decisions the Committee took today in its meeting, which was held on Saturday in the Igueben residence of the National leader, High Chief Tom Ikimi.

Aspirants present included Barr. Anselm Ojiezua, Senator Clifford Ordia, Hon. John Yakubu, Amb. Martins Uhomoibhi and Barr Asue Ighodalo. 

In his opening remarks, the Chairman of the Special Committee, High Chief Tom Ikimi, thanked the aspirants for their commitments to the overall interest of the party and the Esan people.

He read a letter addressed to the Committee by one of the Aspirants, Rt. Hon. Marcus Onobun informed the Committee that he has decided to suspend his aspiration and align with Barr. Asue Ighodalo.  He noted that one of the aspirants, Hon. Felix Akhabue, aka Joefel, was absent without communicating with the Committee.

The chairman called on the aspirants present to address the Committee on the outcomes of their further consultations.

Barr. Anselm Ojiezua informed the Committee that he was still consulting and was waiting for the outcome of the decision of the Committee.

Senator Clifford Ordia said that for the overall interest of the party, personal sacrifices must be made. He announced that he had decided to support the ambition of Barr. Asue Ighodalo

Hon. John Yakubu told the Committee that has gone around the state, he needed time to consult before communicating his decision to the Committee within the next

24 hours. He said he has decided to submit himself to the conclusion of the Committee.

Amb. Martins Uhomoibhi also prayed for more consulting time before making his position known. He expressed confidence in the Committee to make the right decision.

Barr. Asue Ighodalo thanked the Committee for the personal sacrifices being put in. He pledged his continuous alignment with the Committee.

After a brief meeting with members of the Committee, the Chairman, High Chief Tom Ikimi, we adjourned the screening of aspirants to Wednesday, 10th January 2024, to give time for some aspirants to consult further.

Amb. Tony Okonigene ANIVS, RSV

Publicity Secretary

January 6, 2024

Aminu Ado Bayero, emir of Kano, has condemned the trend of kidnapping and trafficking of children from the northern part of the country.

On December 27, the police command in Kano said it had dismantled a human trafficking syndicate that specialised in abduction, buying and selling of minors.

The command said nine suspects were arrested, adding that seven children, majority from Bauchi state, were rescued.

Addressing journalists on Saturday, the emir, represented by Ahmad Umar, Dan Malikin Kano, said the emirate would no longer condone the trading of children in the state.

He said the issue has got out of hand that proactive action must be taken to curb it.

“This ugly trend must stop. We have to rise up against it. We will no longer condone a situation whereby our children are kidnapped, sold and their tribe and religion were changed,” NAN quoted him as saying.

“This illicit act must stop. We have to rise up to check the situation as it is going out of hand. The situation cannot stop itself. It is we that will make it stop. It happened few years ago and now it has happened again. Only God knows how many of our children have been kidnapped and sold.”

Describing the situation as disturbing, the emir called for the punishment of the perpetrators to serve as a lesson to others.

He said Kano has been accommodating visitors for hundreds of years, and that the visitors should not take the advantage of the hospitality to commit crimes.

“Kano, for hundreds of years, has been welcoming visitors and taken them as its sons. Recently we have seen a disturbing and unfortunate incident of rescuing children trafficked to Lagos through Kano,” he said.

Anger over the memo issued by the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta Edu, instructing the Accountant-General of the Federation, Dr Oluwatoyin Madein, to pay N585m into the private bank account of a project accountant in her ministry, Bridget Oniyelu, spiked on Saturday,  with the opposition parties calling for her sacking, and other anti-corruption crusaders calling for the probe of the transaction.

The Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party and civil society organisations insisted on the prosecution of Edu for money laundering.

The minister had claimed that the payment was meant for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun and Lagos states.

The development is happening against the alleged laundering of N37bn by the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development under the former minister, Sadiya Umar-Farouk. 

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had arrested a contractor and also grilled several directors and ex-ministry officials in connection with the case.

The latest incident coincides with the probe of three other ministers, who served under former President Muhammadu Buhari, for graft estimated at N150bn.

The opposition parties in separate interviews with Sunday PUNCH on Saturday, demanded the audit of the ministry from the time it was created by Buhari. 

In the letter, Edu instructed the accountant-general to transfer N585,189,500 to the UBA account of one Oniyelu Bridget Mojisola.

According to the document, N219,429,750 was earmarked as “2023 grant for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom state;” N73,828,750 was budgeted for Cross River State; N219,462,250 for Lagos State; and N72,468,750 for Ogun State.

The minister said the payment should be deducted from the account of the National Investment Office.

The letter read, “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.

“This payment should be made from the National Social Investment Office account with account number: 0020208461037 to the project accountant’s details listed above.”

The Media Assistant to the Minister, Rasheed Zubair, in a statement, said that it was legal within the civil service for such payments to be made into private accounts of staff members, especially project accountants.

“Oniyelu Bridget is the Project Accountant for the GVG from the Department of Finance, and it is legal in civil service for a staff, the project accountant, to be paid and use the same funds legally and retire the same with all receipts and evidence after the project or programme is completed,” Zubair had said.

However, the AGF, Madein, said her office did not honour the request to pay N585m into a private account as directed by the minister.

The Director of Press in the OAGF, Mr Jacob Mokwa, said in a statement on Saturday that the AGF does not make payments on behalf of MDAs.

Madein stated that her office received the minister’s request as contained in a letter referenced FMHAPA/HQ/S.208 and dated December 20, 2023, but did not honour the request.

The AGF noted that payments were usually processed by the affected ministries as self-accounting entities and no bulk payment was supposed to be made to an individual’s account in the name of the project accountant.

The statement read, “The AGF explained that although her office received the said request from the ministry, it did not carry out the payment.

“The ministry was, however, advised on the appropriate steps to take in making such payments in line with the established payment procedure.

“The AGF noted that in such situations, payments are usually processed by the affected ministries as self-accounting entities and no bulk payment is supposed to be made to an individual’s account in the name of the project accountant. 

“She added that such payment should be sent to the beneficiaries through their verified bank accounts.

“Dr Madein reiterated her determination to uphold the principles of accountability and transparency in the management of public finances. She advised MDAs to always ensure that the requisite steps are taken in carrying out financial transactions.”

PDP, LP fume

The Deputy National Youth Leader of the PDP, Timothy Osadolor, said the recent happenings in the ministry had vindicated his party’s position.

Osadolor alleged that the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government was corrupt and had nothing to offer Nigerians.

He said, “We have said times without numbers that this administration is very corrupt. So, what I think Nigerians should do is that all Nigerians of goodwill should come out and call for a thorough investigation into all the ministries.

“And in the same ministry, we are aware the last minister was accused of fraud. So, let’s have an overhaul of the ministry, and let’s know the reason why the Presidency is keeping the ministry unaudited for years.”

Osadolor, who wondered if the ministry was being used to launder money for the APC said, “Nigerians want to know if this is a channel for them to recoup all the money they spent in the last election. We also deserve to know if the ministry wants to be used to stash money for future elections.

“We call for a thorough investigation to unravel all these. Nigerians are hungry enough and are tired now to even start protesting.

“We are calling for the arrest of the minister; we are calling for a thorough investigation of that ministry and that investigation shouldn’t just start now.

“I’m sure the file she (Edu) stumbled upon gave her the courage to do what she’s doing now. So, let’s extend the investigation to the tenure of President Muhammad Buhari. Nigerians deserve the truth.”

On his part, LP’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, alleged that the ministry was created as a conduit to divert public funds.

He said, “The ministry was created ab initio to scam Nigeria and Nigerians. We shouted about all that happened in that ministry under the watchful eyes of the then President, Muhammadu Buhari, and at the end of the day we found out that it was a monumental looting of the nation’s treasury since they created the ministry.

“The ministry was created to benefit the APC individuals. It was used for election and we knew what happened. Now under this government, they have just up the ante and you can see in the last week the revelations that have been coming out that the minister herself is working for some powerful entities in the government. 

“We are not just calling for the minister’s arrest; we want the ministry to be scrapped because it serves a purpose for just a few Nigerians.

“They should be investigated; we have always said this. The investigation should start from the former minister to the present minister.

“And this present minister, if the money is truly found in a private account, should be with the EFCC explaining by now and everyone under that ministry who has a hand in the looting or the diversion of public funds should be made to account for such.”

CSOs, lawyers react

Weighing in, the Country Director, Accountability Lab Nigeria, Friday Odeh, condemned the transfer of the funds to personal accounts, noting that it violated Chapter 7, page 713 of the Federal Government’s Financial Regulation, which prohibited government officials from transferring public funds to private accounts or vice versa.

He also stated that the EFCC and the Central Bank of Nigeria should flag the personal accounts that receive more money than usual, adding, however, that political and business influences prevented the functionality of banking regulations.

“The Federal Government’s Financial Regulation Chapter 7, page 713 talks about personal monies 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 bank account, is deemed to have done so with fraudulent intention. So, it is clearly stated in the Federal Government’s Financial Regulation. Public and private monies should be kept separate.

“So, it is illegal for this kind of situation. The sad part of it is one would assume that the procurement officers or the Perm Sec would be responsible for signing such transactions, but this was directly signed by the minister, which is outright wrong.”

Odeh demanded the sacking or resignation of the minister.

“We are calling not just for the sack or for the resignation of the minister, but also to keep citizens informed on how they should be engaged in all these processes” , the activist added.

On his part, the Head, National Coordinating Secretariat of the United Action Front of Civil Societies of Nigeria, Olawale Okunniyi, noted that corruption would continue to thrive whether the minister was prosecuted or not due to the system operating in the public sector.

 He noted, “Pilfering is made possible by the kind of structure we run in Nigeria; very opulent presidential system that we run and it is corrupt. That is further enabled by the constitution that is corrupt and is foisted on the Nigerian people.

“Well, even if you sack her, even if you reprimand her, or you prosecute her, the cartel will protect her, and it will not stop anything because the only thing that can thrive in Nigeria today is corruption. 

“Nothing good can thrive under the current system because the foundation of the country, which is the constitution, and the economic and political system is faulty.”

Adegoke Rasheed, SAN, said a separate account ought to have been created for the project being a government programme.

He said, “For accountability’s sake, it is not appropriate to make such a payment into an individual account. Even if they have the best of intentions, accountability requires the right thing must be done. It is very wrong. They have a huge task to prove to Nigerians that there is no intention to embezzle or misappropriate the fund.

“The fact that an order was made for the money to be paid into a private account raises a red flag. There should be an account opened for the project. Don’t forget the ministry has been enmeshed in controversy due to the activities of the last administration.”

The Chairman, Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, said he had faith in the administration of President Bola Tinubu to take disciplinary actions against the minister if she was found guilty of contravening any regulations of her public office.

A lawyer, Udochukwu Onoh, called for the immediate sacking of the former APC women leader.

The Chancellor of the International Society for Social Justice and Human Rights, Mr Jackson Omenazu, argued that Edu’s action was a complete breach of the law. 

The Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Auwal Rafsanjani, said, “We are not surprised because like we said before, since Bola Tinubu does not have any agenda for anti-corruption, it is not surprising that he may have corrupt people in his cabinet. What many of them are doing is that they procured the appointments, and just like a business, they want to recover the money, but at the expense of the public.

“We have warned that Tinubu must not appoint people with corrupt tendencies into his government and since he didn’t listen to the advice, we are not surprised to see this happening within six months, but this must be investigated, and the needful must be done as soon as possible.”

The Deputy Executive Director of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Kolawole Oluwadare, stated that focus should not be on whether or not the fund was sent to a private or public account, but to ascertain if it was used for its intended purpose.

He added that there was a need to investigate if there were existing procedures and processes guiding disbursement of public funds and if the funds disbursed were in accordance with extant laws, noting that the procedures for spending public funds should be more stringent.

According to him, it is important for the Federal Government to further investigate how the fund was spent and ensure accountability with a paper trail indicating how the money left the coffers of the government to private accounts.

Oluwadare also urged that the beneficiaries should be made known as a means of transparency to the public, stressing that the law enforcement agencies could only arrest and prosecute the minister and any other person found culpable only after the completion of investigation on the matter.

He said, “The issue is not whether this account is private or not. It is whether some procedures and processes guide the disbursements of public funds and whether the disbursements in this instance are done accordingly. If they are not, perhaps it means there should be a scrutiny of those processes. Can we also look at the processes of how the funds are paid? Does it breach any known processes? Is it covered in the Procurement Act? Those are the necessary questions. 

“Our opinion is not as important as the procedures of the government because I heard that this is going on in other ministries as well and what that means is that the procedures for sending public funds should be more stringent to make sure that processes that won’t make it possible in the hands of private individuals. Apart from the fact that those funds were paid to an individual account, we need to trace how those funds were spent. It is very important at this point. There should be a paper trail up to the point where the money supposedly left the government coffers in a private account. There should be an accountability process on how the funds were spent.

“The issue will rest on whether there is any breach of any procurement process and if there is, ordinarily people will be responsible. I think that should be the first step. Procurement processes, including the Procurement Act and other directives of the Bureau of Public Procurement, are what I think are important at this point. We should know if there are specifics and how it contravenes the regulations and directives of the Bureau of Public Procurement. It is that one that will determine who will be culpable to that extent.

“SERAP has been at the forefront of this for several years even during the Buhari administration to ensure that the funds disbursed via the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs are transparent and accountable by way of returns explaining how those funds were spent. So, whether they were sent to private or public accounts, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and every government agency involved must be part of the social mechanism of the Nigerian government to account for how the funds were spent and who the beneficiaries were. There should be a paper trail to tell that those funds ended up in the hands of the people who needed them. This is more important than the procedure by which it was done.

“An arrest is usually done by law enforcement agencies after investigation even though in Nigeria they arrest people to aid investigation. You can only arrest after investigation or if there is a suspicion of a person investigated not being available by any obstacle. But the thing is it is an investigation that will precede arrest and it is what will determine whether the minister or any public officer is culpable; so, an investigation is the right way to start and determine whether the issue has been going on for a while and in line with the Procurement Act.”

Commenting on the matter, the Executive Director of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, called on the anti-corruption agencies to check if the minister followed due process in transferring the fund from a public account to a private account.

He said, “I am not familiar with any procedure that allows government officials to transfer money from a public account to a private account. But they have been defending it that they followed due process. The due process has not been spelt out in a way that the rest of us will understand. Until that is done and the due process is tested under the law, we will still not accept that they have done the right thing.

“That is why we asked the anti-corruption agencies, including the EFCC and the ICPC, to look at the reasons behind the transfer, who are the beneficiaries and what advantage accrued by transferring such a humongous amount from public coffers to private coffers. So, the minister has to answer all of these questions. 

 “Like the former minister in that ministry, if they do not submit themselves to the rule of law, they should be forced to observe due process according to the rule of law. If she does not submit herself to the anti-corruption agency that is investigating the case, then she could be arrested because she is not covered by the immunity clause in the constitution. Well, I cannot say that she should resign right away until she is proven guilty.

“There should be a way they retire whatever comes into their hands back to the accountant-general and auditor-general of the federation. If the ministry plays its oversight function, it should have the record of the beneficiaries. Suppose there is no clear record of where the money went, in that case, there are several cases to be answered at the level of the anti-corruption agencies and the office of the auditor-general of the federation.”

Lending his voice on the issue, a lawyer, Eze Onyekpere, said the transfer of funds from public to private accounts was against financial regulations.

He noted, “It is an infraction under financial regulations, which say you cannot pay public money into a private account. What she has attempted to do or what she has done is wrong. That reaffirms our position all through that all these lump sum amounts that they put into a budget and say are for indigent people and cash transfers are without transparency and accountability. They have always been a lot that they have been taking out a long time ago.”

He stated that there was a need for transparency by publishing the names of the beneficiaries of the funds on a website for everyone to see.

“There is a solution, which is to publish the names of everyone on the social register to be available on a website available to everyone. When you pay them, it will show and can be easily confirmed. This will be subject to monitoring by the citizens and the media. This is being used as an opportunity to steal funds. All names should be published and anyone who feels too big for his or her name not to be published should be discarded,” he added.

According to him, it is up to the minister to resign her appointment or be fired by the President.

Nigeria’s total fiscal budget for nine consecutive years under the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration grossed N123.45 trillion, a compilation of nine years fiscal budget by Sunday Telegraph showed. In all the nine years, the amount proposed by the executive arm for each budget, and forwarded to the National Assembly for consideration and passage was in most cases, increased above the original threshold proposed by the president. The president in all instances, ultimately signed the upgraded National Assembly’s version. Under the APC administration, the January to December budget cycle initiated by the party has been religiously adhered to, thus making budget implementation’ tracking process, a less cumbersome procedure when compared to the budget timeline under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration.

The immediate past president, Muhammadu Buhari, assumed power on May 29, 2015, ending the 16 years of PDP’s administration. The preceding administration of PDP headed by former president, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, signed N4.425 trillion budget . Former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration’s maiden fiscal budget in 2016 totaled N6.06 trillion. The Buhari administration began earnest preparation for the 2016 budget in December 2015. He assented to the 2015 Appropriation Amendment Act passed by the National Assembly, extending the 2015 financial year till March 31, 2016; and presented a proposed budget of N6.08 trillion for the 2016 fiscal year to the National Assembly. The National Assembly passed the budget on March 23, 2016, reducing it to N6.06 trillion — but the President withheld his assent and returned the document on grounds that there were “grey areas” that needed corrections. He later signed on May 6, 2016, after the lawmakers had worked on the grey areas.

The 2016 budget was his first and the only time National Assembly reduced a budget proposal presented by Buhari. The following year’s budget, 2017 was N7. 44trillion. It would be recalled that Buhari presented a budget proposal of N7.298 trillion to the National Assembly on December 14, but the Senate which passed it on May 11, jacked it up by N143 billion. However, Buhari was unavailable to sign the 2017 budget. He was in a United Kingdom Hospital, where he was recuperating from illness. The then Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, signed the 2017 budget on behalf of Buhari. Majority of budgets under the APC administration sustained an increased threshold. In 2018 for instance, the approved budget was N9.2 trillion. It was N8.9 trillion in 2019, 2020 fiscal budget was ₦10.594 trillion; N13.6 trillion budgeted for 2021 fiscal year and the 2022 fiscal year was N17. 127 trillion; the sum of N21.83 trillion was budgeted for 2023 while total budget for 2024 is N28.7 trillion .

In 2020, while Buhari proposed a budget of N10.33 trillion, the National Assembly increased it to N10.59 trillion — adding N260 billion. The lawmakers also added N3 billion to the National Assembly Budget, increasing it from N125 billion to N128 billion. Buhari signed the budget as presented to him by the legislative chambers. How- ever, the former always made his mind known whenever the National Assembly altered the original estimate sent to members of the parliament. In 2021, the former president submitted a proposed budget of N13.08 trillion on October 8 2020, but the law- makers increased it by N505 billion to N13.58 trillion. While signing the 2023 Appropriation Bill of N17.126 trillion into law, the former president took a swipe at the National Assembly for effecting changes to the budget. Buhari was displeased with some changes as well as major additions and reductions made by the National Assembly in critical projects ‘without justification’.

The former president highlighted some of the worrisome changes in the budget to include an increase in projected Federal Government independent revenue by N400 billion, reduction in the provision for Sinking Fund to Retire Maturing Bonds by N22 bil- lion, and reduction of the provisions for the Non- Regular Allowances of the Nigerian Police Force and the Nigerian Navy by N15 billion and N5 billion respectively, all without any explanation. In addition, he expressed his reservations on the inclusion of new provisions totalling N36.59 billion for National Assembly’s projects in the Service Wide Vote, which he said negated the principles of separation of powers and financial autonomy of the Legislative arm of government.

The trend, upping budget threshold by the National Assembly is a continuous process. Under the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the 2024 fiscal budget is his maiden budget. On Friday, December 29, 2023, the Senate in- creased the 2024 budget by N1.2trillion, moving the budget from N27.5 trillion to N28.7 trillion. Nevertheless, President Tinubu signed the N28.7 trillion 2024 Appropriation Bill into law. He assented to the 2024 Appropriation Bill at a brief ceremony at the Presidential Villa in Abuja last Monday. Among those with the President while he signed the documents were the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Tajudeen Abbas. The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, witnessed the signing ceremony amongst other top dignitaries of government.

In terms of budget implementation, it varies. According to Budget IT, a non – governmental organization tracking budget implementation, it noted that, a total of N4.39 trillion was spent in 2016 despite the Federal Government’s budgeting of N6.06trillion for the fiscal year — due to the late passage of the budget. “The capital expenditure component of the spending in 2016 was only N173 billion of the projected N1.58trillion. However, some of the capital expenses were carried into the new fiscal year 2017 in line with the clause attached to the Appropriation Act”. “With revenue falling behind target and expenditures significantly flat, the deficit for the year stands at N2.19trillion which is very close to the N2.2trillion projected for the entire fiscal year -meaning deficit numbers may be substantially wider if capital spending of 2017 is considered”, it said.

The administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari claimed to implement 100 percent of capital budgets (capital releases) to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), in 2020 and 2021. Speaking during the unveiling of Nigeria’s scorecard on the 2021 Open Budget Survey, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Mr Ben Akabueze, said Nigeria posted its best performance in the open budget survey, improving by 24 points for transparency in the latest survey. “The total transparency score of 45 in the 2021 sur- vey is a significant leap from the 21 scored in the 2019 survey,” he said, noting that the score was the second highest improvement worldwide”.