President Bola Tinubu on Monday suspended the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, from office with immediate effect over an alleged N585 palliative scandal.
Edu has recently faced severe backlash from the public following the revelation of a leaked memo of her directing Oluwatoyin Madein, the accountant-general of the federation, to transfer N585 million to a private account.
The minister also granted funds for flight tickets and airport taxis for ministry staff travelling to Kogi, a state without an airport.
Meanwhile, Oluwatoyin Madein, accountant-general of the federation (AGF), said she did not carry out any request from Edu.
Announcing the suspension on Monday, Chief Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media & Publicity in a statement said the suspension was in line with President Tinubu avowed commitment to uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability in the management of the commonwealth of Nigerians.
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The President further directs the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to conduct a thorough investigation into all aspects of the financial transactions involving the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, as well as one or more agencies thereunder.
“The suspended Minister is hereby directed to hand over to the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, and she is further directed by the President to fully cooperate with the investigating authorities as they conduct their investigation.
Furthermore, the President has tasked a panel that is headed by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance to, among other functions, conduct a comprehensive diagnostic on the financial architecture and framework of the social investment programmes with a view to conclusively reforming the relevant institutions and programmes in a determined bid to eliminate all institutional frailties for the exclusive benefit of disadvantaged households and win back lost public confidence in the initiative.