The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) reports recovering N30 billion from the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Ms. Betta Edu, and the former Chief Executive Officer of the now suspended National Social Investment Programme Authority (NSIPA), Ms. Halima Shehu.
EFCC said it had also placed 50 bank accounts under investigation in the ongoing probe of the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
Both Edu and Shehu were suspended late last year by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over alleged financial corruption.
While suspending the Social Investment Programme, the President asked the EFCC to take over the case and probe both embattled officials.
Giving a report on the three months’ old assignment, EFCC’s Executive Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, said the agency had made progress in the investigation.
Olukoyede opened up on the findings in the March 2024 edition of the commission’s monthly e-magazine, EFCCAlert.
EFCCAlert quoted Olukoyede as saying: “We have laws and regulations guiding our investigations. Nigerians will also know that they are already on suspension and this is based on the investigations we have done, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has proved to Nigerians that he is ready to fight corruption.
“Moreover, with respect to this particular case, we have recovered over N30 billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government. It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago. There are cases that take years to investigate. There are so many angles to it. And we need to follow through with some of the discoveries that we have seen. Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case and they need to do things right. There are so many leads here and there.
“As it is now, we are investigating over 50 bank accounts that we have traced money into. That is no child’s play. That’s a big deal. Then you ask about my staff strength. And again, we have thousands of other cases that we are working on.
“Nigerians have seen the impact of what we have done so far, by way of some people being placed on suspension and by way of the recoveries that we have made. You have seen that the programme itself has been suspended.
“We are exploring so many discoveries that we have stumbled upon in our investigation. If it is about seeing people in jail, well let them wait, everything has a process to follow. So Nigerians should wait and give us the benefit of the doubt.”
