BREAKING: Tinubu sets up presidential panel to investigate corruption in social investment programmes

President Bola Tinubu has set up a Special Presidential Investigative Panel to examine and audit the financial books of several allegations of corruption and diversion of intervention funds at the National Social Investment Programmes (NSIP).

According to a statement issued by a presidential spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale on Saturday, the panel would be headed by Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Honourable Minister of Finance, Wale Edun.

Tinubu stated that the six-member panel, comprising representatives from various ministries, has been tasked with conducting a comprehensive review and audit of the current financial frameworks and policy guidelines of the social investment programmes.

The statement further stated that their aim is to implement a complete re-engineering of the financial architecture of the programmes, with detailed modifications to the procedures guiding their implementation moving forward.

Westernpost reported that President Tinubu suspended all administered programmes under the NSIPA.

Speaking on the need for urgent reforms on the intervention programmes, the president raised significant concerns regarding operational lapses and improprieties surrounding payments to the Programs’ beneficiaries.

In the past week, there have been allegations of mismanagement of office and grand corruption against the administrators of the multi-billion federal government-World Bank intervention programmes.

On Monday, following a series of allegations of misconduct against her, Tinubu ordered the suspension of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu.

Her suspension was a result of several calls for her removal from office from different quarters after a series of leaked internal memos from her ministry showed that she approved funds for flight tickets and airport taxis for the ministry’s staff to Kogi – a state with no airport.

In the same vein, her predecessor, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, also honored an invitation from the anti-graft agency, following claims of misconduct and abuse of office to the tune of N37 billion.

The duo have since been questioned and interrogated by agents of the anti-graft agency, EFCC.

The NSIP was launched in 2016 by former President Buhari, and it has thousands of direct beneficiaries working in the programme’s primary target industries: agriculture, health, education, and tax.

Other programmes under the SIPs include school feeding, cash transfer, TraderMoni, MarketMoni and FarmerMoni, and until 2019 were previously under the vice-president’s supervision and then moved to the humanitarian ministry.

READ FULL STATEMENT BELOW

Sequel to President Bola Tinubu’s six-week suspension of the four (4) programmes under the National Social Investment Programmes Agency (NSIPA), President Tinubu has approved the establishment of a Special Presidential Panel, which will be led by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Honourable Minister of Finance, Mr. Wale Edun.

This Special Presidential Panel is tasked with immediately undertaking a comprehensive review and audit of existing financial frameworks and policy guidelines of the social investment programmes with a view to implementing a total re-engineering of the financial architecture of the programmes with detailed modification to procedures guiding the programmes’ implementation moving forward.

The Special Presidential Panel, which is comprised of ministers representing strategic sectors and will ensure a multi-disciplinary approach to the reform effort, is made up of the following members:

(1) Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance – Chairman

(2) Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare – Member

(3) Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning – Member

(4) Honourable Minister of Information and National Orientation – Member

(5) Honourable Minister of Communicatons, Innovation and Digital Economy – Member

(6) Honourable Minister of State for Youth – Member

President Tinubu anticipates that this Special Presidential Panel will validate the confidence reposed in it by winning back all lost public confidence in these vital programmes over the years by ushering in a new era of operation based on open and accountable governance frameworks that will prove impervious to abuse and incompetence for the exclusive benefit of disadvantaged households across our nation.

Chief Ajuri Ngelale

Special Adviser to the President

(Media & Publicity)

January 13, 2024