Tinubu suspends National Social Investment Programmes over multi-billion naira scandal

President Bola Tinubu has suspended the National Social Investment Programmes being embarked by the National Social Investment Programme Agency under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.

The suspension was due to multi-billion naira scandal rocking the agency which its Coordinator, Halima Shehu was fired and replaced immediately by President Tinubu.

In what look like a conduit pipe for the government officials, the embattled Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu was involved in illegal funds transfer and was suspended from office.

In a statement issued by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and which was signed by the Director of Information, Segun Imohiosen indicated that all the 4 Programmes administered by NSIPA have been suspended for a period of six (6) weeks in the first instance.

The 4 programmes according to the statement included; N-Power Programme, Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme and Home Grown School Feeding Programme.

CAPITAL POST recalled that the pioneer Minister of the Ministry, who served during the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari, Sadiya Farouq was deep necked in fraud running to billions of naira and was currently being interrogated by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The President was quoted to have expressed concern over gaps in the implementation of the programme that made it possible for looting.

To this end the statement indicated that Tinubu has constituted a ministerial panel to conduct a thorough review of the Agency’s operations with a view to recommending necessary reforms of the NSIPA.

“During the period of this suspension, all NSIPA-related activities, including but not limited to all distributions, events, payments, collaborations and registrations are now frozen.

“The President wishes to assure the stakeholders and all Nigerians that his administration remains committed to a swift and unbiased process that will ensure that, going forward, social intervention programmes will work exactly as intended, to the benefit of the most vulnerable Nigerians.”