NewStats: 3,265,473 , 8,186,840 topics. Date: Sunday, 15 June 2025 at 07:05 AM 2k4770

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has seized the ports of the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, and her predecessor, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, over the ongoing investigations into scandals in the ministry.

Edu, who arrived at the EFCC headquarters, Abuja at 10am on Tuesday, was still being quizzed by the commission’s investigators as of the time of filing this report at 7pm.

As the EFCC interrogated the suspended minister over the N44bn fraud uncovered in the ministry, it was learnt that managing directors of three commercial banks were also questioned on Tuesday over the fraud.

The scandal involving Edu burst open after a leaked memo revealed that the suspended minister directed the ant-General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, to transfer N585m to a private owned by one Oniyelu Bridget, who the ministry claimed currently serves as the Project ant, Grants for Vulnerable Groups.

The minister had claimed that the N585m payment was meant for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states, describing the allegations against her as baseless.

The Media Assistant to the minister, Rasheed Olarewaju, said in a statement that it was legal within the civil service for such payments to be made into private s of staff , especially project ants.

In deference to public pressure, the President on Monday suspended Edu and directed her to hand over to the permanent secretary in the ministry.


On Tuesday, Edu honoured the EFCC invitation and she was subjected to marathon interrogation by investigators.

It was learnt that her personal and official ports were taken away by detectives and she was barred from travelling out of the country.

ports seized

Her predecessor, Umar-Farouq, had been quizzed by investigators for 12 hours on Monday in connection with the probe into the N37.1bn allegedly laundered during her tenure in office, through a contractor, James Okwete.

The ex-minister’s port was also seized as part of her bail conditions before she was subsequently released late Monday night.

An impeccable EFCC source said the ports of Edu and the former minister were seized to deter them from fleeing the country while the investigation subsists.

“The commission has seized the ports of the two ministers, Sadiya Shehu and Betta Edu. We have also seized Mrs Halima Shehu’s port pending the conclusion of investigations. The commission does not want to risk having any of them leave the country while they still have questions to answer,” the source said.

The lawyer to the former minister, Dipo Okpeseyi, SAN, could not be reached for comment on his client’s ordeal as he did not respond to phone calls. He also did not respond to a message seeking his comment. Also, efforts to get Edu did not succeed

The PUNCH could not immediately confirm whether she was released on Tuesday night.

Apart from Edu, Ms Halima Shehu, the National Coordinator and CEO of the National Social Investment Programme, an agency under the humanitarian ministry, had been similarly suspended indefinitely over alleged financial misappropriation.

Shehu had been arrested and questioned by the EFCC in connection with the movement of N44bn from the NSIPA to some suspicious private and corporate s within the last four days in December 2023.

The huge sum was reportedly moved without presidential approval.

As part of her bail conditions, Shehu has been reporting to the EFCC office every day to assist investigators.

Before her appointment, Shehu worked as the National Coordinator of the Conditional Cash Transfer Programme under former President Muhammadu Buhari.


Top EFCC sources confirmed the probe of the senior bank executives to our correspondent on Tuesday.

An impeccable EFCC source revealed that the banks were deeply involved in the fraud under investigation.

The source revealed, “The MDs of the banks were grilled by our interrogators at the EFCC headquarters on Tuesday. They were invited and are being probed in connection with the uncovered N44bn fraud and the N585m involving Halima Shehu and Betta Edu.

“The suspended minister and the coordinator have both given new revelations during their interrogations, and the investigation is still ongoing.’’

Giving his opinion on the unfolding scandals, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, accused the All Progressives Congress of using the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and poverty alleviation as a cash cow for successive governments.

Atiku said the suspension of the minister, Edu, was commendable, but not enough.

Atiku in a statement by his Special Assistant, Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Tuesday, described it as unfortunate that a programme that was designed to lift over 100 million Nigerians out of extreme poverty had allegedly become a cash cow for successive APC governments.

He said, “While Tinubu deserves commendation for suspending Edu, we believe this is a belated move. Firstly, he had no business appointing her as a minister of such a sensitive ministry in the first place. Tinubu put politics ahead of competence, hence this scandal.

“What experience did Betta have in the development sector? How was Imaan Ibrahim, with her wealth of experience, overlooked? How did the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, stand as Betta Edu’s referee during her clearance at the Senate?”

Atiku who called for reform of the Ministry, alleged that it was not only Edu that was involved in the transactions.

“Betta Edu should not be the fall guy. Others who have remotely and wickedly benefitted from money that was meant for poor Nigerians ought to be fished out, probed, and prosecuted too. It is demonic and tendentiously wicked to steal in the name of the poor, he stated.

The statement read in part, “There is a need for the government to reform the humanitarian affairs ministry and other interventionist programmes that had become an ATM and POS for those in power.

“He noted that the fact that the previous Humanitarian Affairs Minister, Sadiya Umar Farouq, was also being probed for N37bn fraud was evidence that immediate and urgent actions need to be taken to reform the ministry.

“Even during the COVID-19 lockdown, Umar-Farouq continued to implement the school feeding programme. She ridiculously claimed that the food would be delivered to the students at home since schools were shut.


“Today, Betta Edu claims that over three million households got N20,000 each during the Yuletide. Sadly, there is no evidence of millions of Nigerians getting such money. This shows that money has just been going into private pockets.

“The scandal that we are contending with is not about Betta Edu, nor about Halima Shehu, or any other rogue element for that matter. It is about a problem of systemic corruption through which the APC continues to bleed the treasury, ironically, asphyxiating the poor and vulnerable segment of the country, all in the name of caring for them.

“The APC has weaponized poverty and hunger to control the minds of the vulnerable masses, and it is even worse that they have devised a method to use poverty as an instrument of official corruption.”

APC slams Atiku

Reacting, the APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, cautioned the former vice president against jumping to conclusions, noting that Edu is not guilty until the allegations against her are proven.

He berated Atiku and the PDP, saying they faced more corrupt allegations than Edu and the APC.

Ibrahim stated, “Atiku, from his record, it was said somewhere that he read elementary law. And if indeed he read law at whatever level, even if it is a kindergarten level, ought to know that the presumption of the law on an accused is that he is innocent until proven guilty.’’


The APC official noted that the way President Tinubu responded to the allegations showed that ‘’he is a president that listens to the yearnings of Nigeria and that will act by the provision of the law.’’

He added, “At the stage, we are now, a thorough investigation has been directed; it will be wrong for anyone to jump to the conclusion that there is theft or that the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs is a conduit that is made to siphon public funds for APC governments.

“If it is, the investigations will not have been directed, and the government would not have acted swiftly and appropriately it did.”

On the allegation that the APC is a corrupt party, Ibrahim clarified, “If you say because a few people in the APC who are accused of wrongdoing are to limit wrongdoings to the APC, then, one is not being fair to the composition of parties.”

He continued, “In Nigeria, and I am sure like in other countries of the world, there is no party that is composed of saints, there is no party that can beat its chest and say its are infallible.

“What is important is to see that the party they belong to has the willingness, the desire, and the courage to call them to order when they go wrong. The APC and the President of the country, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, have demonstrated that willingness.

“If on the basis of allegations you will jump to conclusion, the PDP will not be in a position to talk because ever since the formation of the party in Nigeria, there has not been any party that has faced allegations of corruption like the PDP.”


In a related development, the PDP has asked the President to suspend and investigate the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo over his alleged involvement in a N438m contract awarded by Edu.

Tunji-Ojo had denied involvement in the consultancy contract awarded to New Planet Project Limited, a company in which he was a former director.

The minister explained that he resigned as a director of the firm in 2019.

But the opposition party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, Tuesday asked the President to take immediate action “to protect the resources meant for the wellbeing of poor Nigerians from further plundering by suspending the Interior minister over the alleged fraud and hand him over to the EFCC for investigation like his suspended counterpart.’’

Interior minister


Meanwhile, Tunji-Ojo has dismissed reports claiming he was summoned to the Presidential Villa over allegations of involvement in the humanitarian ministry scandal.

Rather, the minister said he was at the State House to brief President Tinubu on the outcome of the recently launched online port portal.


Tunde Alao, the media aide to the minister, in a statement on Tuesday, said Tunji-Ojo’s visit to Aso Rock was to keep an earlier scheduled meeting with the president, stressing that he was not summoned as speculated.

“The minister only visited Aso Rock to keep an earlier scheduled meeting with President Tinubu. The sensational social media headline that says the minister was summoned to Aso Rock was quite misleading and should be discountenanced by Nigerians,’’ he said.

Also, a former governor of Kano State, Ibrahim Shekarau, has commended President Bola Tinubu on the suspension of the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu.

Shekarau commended Tinubu in an interview on Channels Television on Tuesday.

https://punchng.com/humanitarian-ministry-scandals-efcc-seizes-edu-former-ministers-ports/

In Nigerian political space, there's no tribalism no religious bigotry but they speak one word...corruption. One would be wondering why Diezani would pick those guys as her SPVs. See a fulani woman, using a southerner and a christian as her SPV.

I pity all these NL boys fighting one another over these people,all in the name of religion and tribalism. Betta Edu really messed up. Someone whose nomination as minister was massively criticised by her party loyalists cos of her age and with such a sensitive portfolio, ought to have exercised caution in dealing with money. She easily has access to money in that ministry more than in any other. she can spend any amount and nobody would querry her cos of the calibre of people who are beneficiaries( the poor masses who don't operate bank s). Even if the motive was legit, it is always difficult to entrust Nigerian civil servants and politicians with money. Her SPV won't utilize up to half of that money and Beta would definitely chop her own .

As we know they're all thieves, she should have transferred such money into a company instead. Maybe she's afraid that, if transferred to the company owned by any of her associates, the money is a gonner. Mrs Sadiyya Farouk also did same during the lock down when she did that selected palliatives disbursement during the covid-19 lock down in a few states and called the media to witness it as a few people were seen on queue while she was giving them cash, to make people believe she acted well. Betta Edu must have taken after her. It's not a new thing to them to steal what belongs to the people. She met the system on ground and kuku continued where the former minister had stopped. What an open disgrace, in barely 6 months in office. I wonder how much she'd have eaten in 4 years.

E done cast.. lass lass... Na everybody go chop breakfast.

The loot under Buhari was mind boggling!

Some women today are bad market. At times, I wonder if that Sadiya is a human being. All her actions when she was in government were just crude, barbaric and degrading. Buhari just watched on while his appointee were committing crime against the masses. That sadiya should not be released. She should be made to answer for her sins. But the system is already rotten. One judge will just come tomorrow and release her on health ground despite knowing that her action is just a facade.

This we all know from day one. And they both look alike except the wider nose and lip of the edu.

Very greedy Ministers

I now believe the old saying that "What a man can do a woman can do better".

Is too early to steal from public till....the truth remains that those around tinubu knew he's too old to checkmate them ...a man who's dementia is completely incapable to run the office of president...this has been my stand ...I had this personal experience with my late dad ..old age comes with it's own challenges which include the capacity to think clearly, act quickly and be in the right frame of mind all the time ..so these thieves around him knew he's limited...that why they started stealing early and senators are reg to be a mere minister and this is the reason wike is going about talking anyhow...I believe tinubu would have been a better president if he came in like 8years ago but not now...

Criminals everywhere

Should I just say that we are all corrupt in this country.i was at a teaching hospital in one of our state ...the mess there is inhuman.

Na wa

Wetin I dey feel about Edu's matter be say. One powerful person wan straff am and she no gree na why them dabaru everything for her.

All these ones na just beating around the bush. Nothing will happen to her.

Nonesense!

I am disappointed at this Betta Edu. I was rooting for her as a young minister. What's really wrong with the mentality of Nigerians when they see money? Shame!

So this old mama na 36 years?

Hmmmmm

“What experience did Betta have in the development sector? How was Imaan Ibrahim, with her wealth of experience, overlooked? How did the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, stand as Betta Edu’s referee during her clearance at the Senate?”

What of the petroleum sector? The FIRS?
can they also make public the disbursement and expenditures in those areas?

Thieves

Nigerians are corrupt
The ones on the sidelines are even worse than the ones in power.
They are just waiting for the opportunity

Women dey steal like this too.

These ones no get integrity at all.

These Girls strong oo........They did not even Collapse or pretend to Faint at the Efcc HQ.

If na Dino Melaye now, he for don fall say he Bp dey rise.

When it comes to looting under buhari istration, abeg! i doff my hat for that SADIYA FAROUQ!! 😏

Na only Abacha beat her record for dis country

For Sadiya Umar Farouk : Is she Going to Get Her Arm Chop Off As Per Sharia Law?

What she did to us during N-power, all the causes she received during N-power. Infact this woman get mind. She always believe Nigeria we never do her anything. Seizing her port is not enough. I know they will still release her after one month.

Criminals everywhere in a government being led by a super Criminal

Noting will happen at the end of the day

Way to go. No one escapes with our funds again.

The Buhari govt is the worse this country has ever experienced. The level of looting that happened in that govt can't be quantified. This was a man that came into power with the mantra of "Mr Integrity". Anything that was not related to Fulani herdsmen and cattle didn't concern him.

If we want to be serious in this country, Buhari should be probed! For the monumental stealing that happened under his watch, for the systemic killing of indigenous people in states like Benue, Plateau. That man just needs to be probed. The international criminal Court can even come in.

GOFRONT:
These Girls strong oo........They did not even Collapse or pretend to Faint at the Efcc HQ.

If na Dino Melaye now, he for don fall say he Bp dey rise.

Women? You don't know half of them.

Bobloco:

https://punchng.com/humanitarian-ministry-scandals-efcc-seizes-edu-former-ministers-ports/

women and youth on power

Thieves