Former National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer of the National Social Investment Programme Agency, Halima Shehu, has rejected allegations that she diverted ₦44 billion from the agency and called for the findings of official investigations to be published.
Speaking during a televised interview on Monday, Shehu maintained that investigators did not trace agency funds to her accounts or those of her relatives and associates.
She said the transactions under scrutiny concerned payments to licensed service providers and financial institutions engaged to distribute social-intervention funds to beneficiaries, rather than transfers into private accounts.
According to the former coordinator, she identified weaknesses in the agency’s financial controls shortly after taking office and reported suspected procedural breaches to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.
Shehu alleged that some fund movements occurred without her approval and that certain programme managers operated outside established administrative channels. She further claimed that her suspension in December 2023 followed her decision to raise those concerns.
She said she supplied investigators with documents and other material relevant to the inquiry, while acknowledging that administrative errors might have occurred during her tenure.
The former NSIPA chief urged the Federal Government to disclose the outcome of the investigations in the interest of transparency and public accountability. Her statements represent her account of the disputed transactions and do not amount to a formal finding by an investigative agency or court.
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