Why N585 Million-Palliative Was Transferred To Private Account (Full Details)

Rasheed Zubair, the Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to Betta Edu, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, asserted that the transfer of N585,189,500.00 to a personal account adhered to current civil service regulations and is legally permissible….CONTINUE READING

In a document signed and sent by Edu to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, she requested the payment of N585.198 million to the personal account of Oniyelu Bridget Mojisola. The funds, intended for vulnerable communities in Lagos, Ogun, Cross River, and Akwa Ibom, were deposited into Oniyelu’s account, as indicated in the widely circulated document.

Social media reactions from Nigerians have been mixed, with many calling for the minister’s resignation.

Responding to the leaked document in a statement released on Friday, Zubair insisted that the payment to Bridget’s account was lawful. He explained that Bridget is the Project Accountant for Grants for Vulnerable Groups and emphasized that the N585 million was approved for implementing grants to vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states.

Zubair attributed the attempts to link the minister to fraudulent activities to disgruntled elements seeking to tarnish her reputation, particularly after she alerted the federal government to the ongoing N44.8 Billion fraud in NSIPA.

He clarified, “Oniyelu Bridget is the Project Accountant for GVG from the Department of Finance, and it is legal in civil service for a staff, the project accountant, to be paid and use the same funds legally and retire the same with all receipts and evidence after the project or programme is completed.”