Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN) has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to remit the N32.7 billion and $445,000 it recovered from two former ministers to the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA).
Falana, who made the call in a statement issued on Sunday, August 24, 2025, under the platform of the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB), said President Bola Tinubu originally allocated the funds for the implementation of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP).
The programme covers school feeding, N-Power, conditional cash transfers, and small business support through the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP).
He noted that although the EFCC successfully recovered the exact N32.7 billion alongside $445,000 from the officials accused of diverting the funds, the money has not yet been transferred to NSIPA, contrary to the EFCC’s policy of channelling recovered loot to its intended use.
“We commend the EFCC and urge it to intensify efforts to recover the outstanding N20 billion still missing.
“More importantly, the recovered N32.7 billion and $445,000 should be handed over to NSIPA to ease the suffering of over 133 million Nigerians living in multi-dimensional poverty,” Falana stated.
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The activist lawyer also urged all levels of government, federal, state, and local governments, to increase their contributions to social protection schemes, citing a surge in government revenue.
He recalled that the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) shared N2.001 trillion in July 2025 and N1.8 trillion in June 2025 from gross totals of N3.836 trillion and N3.6 trillion, respectively.
“Governments must go beyond lip service and meaningfully fund social programmes. They must put their money where their mouth is,” he added.
Falana’s comments come amid growing concerns about corruption in Nigeria’s social welfare sector and renewed calls for transparency in the management of funds meant for the poor.
