Suspended Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA), Halima Shehu, has said she did not steal any money, nor did her relatives or friends receive any.
Shehu maintained her innocence and gave a detailed account of the events that led to her suspension.
She said, “while I was still in office, I contacted the EFCC Chairman on 21 December 2023, before my suspension. I handed over a letter to him outlining all the violations of financial regulations within the agency, including money moving out of the CBN account to various destinations without the necessary supporting documentation. I documented everything and handed the letter over to him. The letter was addressed to His Excellency, the President. At that point, the EFCC Chairman told me that he would escalate the matter appropriately.
“I also contacted the ICPC Chairman before my suspension to inform him about the ongoing issues within the agency, including the addition of unauthorised signatures to the SIBAS account without my approval. I expected all these matters to be escalated. But, to my utter shock, neither of them got back to me, and I was suspended just 10 weeks after I had escalated these issues to them.
“Up until this moment, I have not heard anything about the whistleblowing I carried out. I thought I was supposed to be honoured for the proactive steps I took. I thought I was supposed to be protected. Instead, I was suspended.”
“The allegation was that I had transferred ₦44 billion into private accounts. Until this moment, I will tell you that those are false allegations against Halimah Shehu. I never transferred ₦44 billion into any personal account. The EFCC never recovered a single penny from my personal account, my family’s accounts or the personal accounts of any of my friends.”
She revealed that there were different transactions from CBN accounts to various destinations, including personal accounts and asked that this informations be put out there in the media.
She revealed that the day she was supposed to flag off the programme, she was suspended.
“I was scheduled to flag off the empowerment programme on the day my suspension took effect. The money had already been transferred into the accounts of the payment service providers, who were existing contractors of the ministry. Their contracts had not expired, and I did not contract any of them.
“Betta Edu had brought some bankers on board, while some of the payment service providers were existing contractors. The only thing I was trying to do was ensure that the right thing was done, because the money was leaving the account and the beneficiaries were yet to benefit from it.
Then, before I knew what was happening, I was suspended. No one called me to ask for an explanation or to hear my side of the story.”
…alleges weak financial controls, unauthorised fund movements under Betta Edu
Halimah Shehu stated she discovered weak financial controls and money being moved without accountability not to long she assumed the office as the CEO of NSIPA.
“I discovered weak financial controls and money being moved without accountability.
She revealed that while she conducted her own audit, she drew the attention of the minister, Betta Edu, as well as the Permanent Secretary at the time, and made it clear to the minister that, under the mandate of NSIPA, she did not have the right to access and handle the agency’s funds in the manner she was doing.
She revealed how Betta Edu was able to gain access to the funds
“She had appointed more than 10 people in my agency, which was a violation of the mandate of NSIPA. As the CEO, I was supposed to appoint the programme managers who would help me deliver the mandate assigned to me. Clearly, the mandate stated that I was the Chief Executive Officer, in charge of implementing the programmes, and accountable for every kobo, penny and dollar that left the agency’s accounts.
“Yet, there were movements of funds that I had neither approved nor authorised, and to which I had not consented. The transactions did not come through me. Instead, they started from Betta Edu and went to the programme managers she had appointed, who reported only to her.
“I would come to the office and not see them, despite the fact that I was willing to teach them. With due respect to her appointment, I am not saying I am perfect. No public officer is perfect, and there can be administrative lapses. However, she had been appointed to the ministry and was not willing to learn how the programmes were supposed to be implemented. The other people she appointed were also new to the ministry and were not willing to undergo training.
“She simply wanted to be in charge and in control. As a result, she was playing her role as minister, my role as CEO and the role of the Permanent Secretary, while violating the established financial structures of the agency.
“At that point, she would not call me for meetings, and she never responded to any letter I sent to her office. She also instructed all the programme managers not to report to me, except to her.”