Human rights lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) have called for an investigation into the alleged failure to account for N33.75 billion earmarked for cash transfers to poor and vulnerable Nigerians.
The disclosure was contained in the Auditor-General of the Federation’s 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance/Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government.
Falana urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to work with the Auditor-General’s office to trace and recover the funds.
He also called for an immediate investigation into the alleged diversion of the money, urging that anyone found culpable should be prosecuted.
According to Falana, the National Social Investment Programme Agency was established under the NSIPA Act 2022 to design and implement social investment programmes, manage beneficiary databases and strengthen payment and accountability systems.
The agency oversees programmes including N-Power, the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, the National Cash Transfer Programme, the National Social Safety Net, the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme and the Grant for Vulnerable Groups.
Falana, however, alleged that the management of some of the programmes had been weakened by corruption and poor financial controls.
He cited previous controversies involving former Humanitarian Affairs Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq, former Minister Betta Edu and former NSIPA chief executive Halima Shehu.
Farouq was investigated by the EFCC over alleged money laundering involving more than N37.1 billion, while Edu was suspended in January 2024 following a controversy over a directive to transfer N585 million in public intervention funds into a private account.
Falana also urged the EFCC to conclude investigations into the allegations involving Edu and Shehu and make the outcome public.
Meanwhile, SERAP, in a letter dated September 5, 2026, urged President Bola Tinubu to direct relevant government agencies to account for N33.751 billion reportedly transferred to 3,295,207 households and beneficiaries across 35 states in 2023.
The organisation called for the publication of complete payment records, including beneficiary details, verification records, authorisations, reconciliation documents and the payment trail.
SERAP said the National Cash Transfer Office had failed to provide auditors with REMITA statements capable of confirming that the funds actually reached the intended beneficiaries.
It also called for the payments to be reconciled with the National Social Register and National Beneficiary Register to identify possible duplicate, fictitious, deceased, ineligible or otherwise irregular beneficiaries.
Beyond the N33.751 billion, SERAP cited several other expenditures flagged by the Auditor-General, including N36.744 billion allegedly paid without prepayment audit and N4.616 billion in expenditure without adequate supporting documents.
The organisation said the audit report raised the possibility that the N4.616 billion may have been diverted.
SERAP also raised concerns over N350.182 million reportedly spent on enrolling unbanked beneficiaries, N89.511 million spent on store purchases and N17.422 million advanced to staff for diesel purchases.
It further cited N280.42 million paid to payment service providers as mobilisation and advance payments without Advance Payment Guarantees.
Another N393.71 million was reportedly disbursed to nine states for beneficiary enrolment activities but remained unaccounted for, according to SERAP.
The organisation said the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office also had N2.55 billion in questionable expenditures, including N2.24 billion paid through 158 vouchers without prepayment audit.
Other flagged expenditures included payments for laptops that were allegedly neither delivered nor recorded in the store ledger, advertisements without evidence of publication and software contracts allegedly awarded without the required clearance.
SERAP said the findings pointed to repeated weaknesses in financial and administrative controls, including missing payment records, inadequate beneficiary documentation, questionable procurement processes and unaccounted public funds.
It urged the President to direct anti-corruption agencies to investigate the allegations, recover any funds found to have been improperly spent or diverted and prosecute anyone found culpable.
The group also demanded that the government publish details of recovered funds, including the amount recovered, date of recovery, responsible institution and Treasury account into which the money was paid.
SERAP called for the publication of state-by-state beneficiary figures, amounts disbursed, payment dates, failed or reversed transactions, funds returned to the Treasury and administrative and transaction costs associated with the programme.
It also urged the government to establish a complaints mechanism for beneficiaries who did not receive payments and publish an updated beneficiary register, subject to appropriate privacy safeguards.
SERAP gave the Federal Government seven days from the receipt or publication of its letter to act on its demands, warning that it could pursue legal action, including proceedings before the ECOWAS Court and the World Bank Accountability Mechanism.
The latest demands have renewed scrutiny of Nigeria’s social investment programmes and placed additional pressure on government agencies to clarify how funds intended for vulnerable Nigerians were disbursed and accounted for.
