N76.24bn Cash Transfer Scandal: Audit Faults Federal Office Over Missing Beneficiary Records

….Auditor-General Demands Accountability, Recovery Of Funds

…. Report Flags N33.75bn Payments, N36.74bn Transactions Wthout Prepayment Audit

….Says Federal Office Failed To Identify Millions Of Beneficiaries Across 35 State

The National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) has been indicted in an audit report over its failure to provide complete records identifying beneficiaries of N33.75bn reportedly transferred to millions of poor households across 35 states in 2023.

The report also accused the office of denying auditors access to bank statements required to verify the transactions, raising concerns about the transparency and accountability of a federal social protection programme designed to support vulnerable Nigerians.

PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the findings formed part of eight audit queries against the NCTO, involving a combined N76.24bn, contained in the Auditor-General of the Federation’s 2024 Annual Report on Non-compliance and Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies, covering the 2023 financial year.

According to an analysis of the report by the UDEME project of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, the office either failed to respond satisfactorily to the audit queries or did not provide adequate explanations for the transactions examined.

The Auditor-General consequently maintained that the findings remained valid pending the implementation of the recommendations.

The cash transfers were made during the administrations of former President Muhammadu Buhari and President Bola Tinubu, under the supervision of former Ministers of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq and Betta Edu, who served at different periods in 2023.

However, the audit findings do not, by themselves, establish that the funds were stolen or that either former minister personally authorised any irregular transaction.

The NCTO operates the conditional cash transfer component of the National Social Safety Nets Project, a World Bank-financed initiative intended to provide financial assistance to poor households identified through the National Social Register.

N33.75bn payments without verifiable beneficiaries

The Auditor-General’s report stated that the NCTO reported making electronic transfers totalling N33.75bn to approximately 3.29 million households and beneficiaries across 35 states in 2023.

However, the payment vouchers presented for examination did not contain complete beneficiary details, making it difficult for auditors to establish the identities of those who received the money.

The office also failed to provide the Remita statement required to reconcile the reported transfers with the beneficiaries listed on the National Social Register.

The missing records prevented the auditors from authenticating the payments and determining whether the recipients were genuine beneficiaries of the programme.

The report further alleged that NCTO accounts staff obstructed efforts to obtain access to the Remita statement, thereby frustrating the audit process.

The Auditor-General warned that the failure to verify the transactions exposed public funds to possible loss and created the risk that ineligible or fictitious individuals might have received payments.

Consequently, the Auditor-General recommended that the National Programme Manager, Abdullahi Imam, be required to account for the N33.75bn, recover and remit the amount to the Treasury, and submit evidence that the intended beneficiaries received the money to the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly.

The recommendation is an audit demand for accountability and recovery, not a judicial determination that the entire sum was stolen.

N36.74bn paid without mandatory audit checks

In another major finding, the report identified 215 payment vouchers totalling N36.74bn relating to transactions described as “SS, IDA and output base” in December 2023.

According to the auditors, the payments were processed without the mandatory internal audit and prepayment checks required under Nigeria’s Financial Regulations.

The report stated that the Internal Audit Unit examined the vouchers only after the payments had been made, contrary to paragraph 1705 of the Financial Regulations, which requires a 100 per cent prepayment audit of checked and passed vouchers.

Although the report acknowledged that the World Bank’s November 2021 project appraisal document provided for compliance and operational audits without adopting a prepayment audit system, the Auditor-General maintained that the practice did not excuse the agency from complying with Nigeria’s financial regulations.

The Auditor-General recommended that the N36.74bn be fully accounted for and recovered, with appropriate sanctions imposed on officials found responsible for gross misconduct.

The audit also uncovered 101 payments totalling N4.62bn in the office’s “S&S/IDA Cash Book” for which the corresponding payment vouchers were not presented for examination.

The absence of the vouchers prevented the auditors from establishing the purposes of the payments and verifying the expenditure.

The report said the practice violated Section 85(2) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which provides for the Auditor-General’s examination of public accounts, as well as paragraph 601 of the Financial Regulations, which prohibits payments for services without the required vouchers.

The auditors warned that the missing documentation exposed public funds to possible misapplication and diversion.

They recommended that the N4.62bn be recovered from the office.

The report further questioned N3.09bn paid to states under the National Social Safety Nets Project scale-up programme for the enrolment of unbanked, poor and vulnerable households.

Although the NCTO presented documentation relating to N2.74bn reportedly disbursed to 34 states, the auditors said N350.18m remained unaccounted for.

They also faulted the supporting documents, describing them as inadequate to establish how the money was spent or which activities were financed.

According to the report, the records lacked beneficiary lists, photographs of enrolment exercises, signed attendance registers, activity reports and the names of individuals who received payments during the exercises.

In a related query, the auditors examined N393.71m reportedly returned to the Treasury by nine State Cash Transfer Units in 2023 after enrolment exercises could not be conducted.

The NCTO attributed the failure to insecurity, disasters and other factors.

However, the office did not provide Remita inflow statements or payment slips confirming that the refunds had been credited to the Consolidated Revenue Fund. It also failed to provide evidence that the affected states subsequently enrolled the intended beneficiaries.

N280.42m mobilisation paid without guarantees

The audit report also faulted the payment of N280.42m to payment service providers as a 30 per cent advance for implementing a last-mile solution for beneficiaries.

The auditors said the payments were made without advance payment guarantees, contrary to Section 71 of the Finance Act 2020, which requires such guarantees for mobilisation fees.

The report also questioned the procurement process, stating that the contract files did not contain prequalification documents, bidding records or technical and financial evaluations to justify the selection of the service providers.

The absence of these records raised concerns about whether the providers were selected through due process and whether the payments complied with applicable financial and procurement requirements.

Tinubu suspended social investment programmes in 2024

The audit findings have renewed scrutiny of Nigeria’s cash transfer scheme, which was among the social intervention programmes affected by the Federal Government’s actions in January 2024.

President Tinubu suspended the Chief Executive Officer of the National Social Investment Programme Agency, Halima Shehu, over alleged financial misappropriation.

Days later, the President announced the suspension of the agency’s four programmes for an initial six weeks, citing operational lapses and improprieties surrounding payments to beneficiaries.

The suspensions followed concerns over the administration of the social investment programmes, which were intended to provide financial relief to vulnerable households.

In March 2026, Imam said the cash transfer initiative had increased its target from 10.4 million to 15 million beneficiaries.

The latest audit findings, however, raise questions about the ability of the programme’s administrators to demonstrate that public funds were properly disbursed and reached the intended recipients.

SERAP sues Federal Government over N78.8bn

Meanwhile, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has instituted a suit against the Federal Government at the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice over alleged diversion, irregular expenditure and failure to account for N78.8bn allocated to cash transfer and other social protection programmes.

The suit reportedly seeks an order compelling the government to account for the funds and strengthen financial oversight of programmes intended to assist vulnerable Nigerians.

SERAP’s action followed audit concerns involving the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, the NCTO and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office.

The organisation has called for investigations into N76.24bn in questioned expenditure involving the NCTO and N2.55bn associated with NASSCO, as well as the recovery of any funds established to have been misappropriated.

The group argued that failure to investigate the questioned expenditure, account for the money and recover funds unlawfully spent would undermine the rights and welfare of vulnerable households.

In September, SERAP had also urged Tinubu to direct relevant agencies to account for the N33.751bn in 2023 cash transfers and publish beneficiary records and supporting payment documentation.

The Auditor-General’s recommendations call for the NCTO’s programme manager to account for the questioned transactions, recover and remit amounts found due to the Treasury, and provide evidence of compliance to the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committees.

The report further warned that failure to comply could attract sanctions under the relevant provisions of the Financial Regulations, including provisions dealing with irregular payments and gross misconduct.

With millions of Nigerians facing economic hardship, the findings have placed renewed emphasis on the need for transparent beneficiary records, verifiable electronic payments and effective oversight of public funds earmarked for poverty alleviation.

The central question now is whether the responsible authorities will establish who received the money, account for the questioned transactions and ensure that assistance intended for poor households reaches those who need it most.

Do you want to share a story with us? Do you want to advertise with us? Do you need publicity for a product, service, or event? Contact us on WhatsApp +2348183319097 Email: platformtimes@gmail.com

We are committed to impactful investigative journalism for human interest and social justice. Your donation will help us tell more stories. Kindly donate any amount HERE

Platform Times is a trailblazing news website that empowers grassroots communities across Africa by delivering the latest news through engaging multimedia content. By leveraging photos, text, and videos, the site inspires concerned citizens and activists worldwide to take action against critical issues, including corruption, poverty, environmental degradation, and democratic disregard.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.