ICPC Uncovers N2.67Billion School Feeding Funds in Private Pockets, N2.5Billion Hidden in Dead Civil Servant’s Account

Matilda Omonaiye/

Nigerian anti-graft agents have uncovered in private accounts a sum of N2.67 billion released for school feeding during COVID-19 lockdown when children were not in school.

According to the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the fund was released by the Federal Government to some federal colleges.

The agency also allegedly discovered over N2.5 billion appropriated by a deceased senior civil servant in the Ministry of Agric for himself and cronies. It also listed other assets recovered in the Agric Ministry to include 18 buildings, 12 business premises and 25 plots of land.

The Chairman of ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, made the disclosure today in his keynote address at the second National Summit on Diminishing Corruption with the theme: “Together Against Corruption and Launch of the National Ethics and Integrity Policy”. The event held at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said under Open Treasury Portal review carried out between January to August 15, 2020, out of 268 Ministries, Departments and Agendas (MDAs) 72 of them had cumulative infractions of N90 million. He said while 33 MDAs tendered explanations that N4.1 billion was transferred to sub-TSA, N4.2 billion paid to individuals had no satisfactory explanations.

Owasanoye said, “We observed that transfers to sub-TSA was to prevent disbursement from being monitored. Nevertheless, we discovered payments to some federal colleges for school feeding in the sum of N2.67 billion during lockdown when the children are not in school, and some of the money ended up in personal accounts. We have commenced investigations into these finding.”

The ICPC chairman also said under its 2020 constituency and executive projects tracking initiative, 722 projects with a threshold of N100 million (490 ZiP and 232 executives) was tracked across 16 states. He noted that a number of projects described as ongoing in the budget, were found to be new projects that ought to have been excluded in order to enable government complete existing projects; absence of needs assessment resulted in projects recommended for communities that do not require them being abandoned; projects sited in private houses on private land thus appropriating common asset to personal use, hence denying communities of the benefit; absence of synergy between outgoing project sponsors and their successors.

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