SERAP Demands Probe into ₦78.8bn Cash Transfer Scandal

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on President Bola Tinubu to initiate an urgent investigation into alleged financial irregularities involving over ₦78.8 billion related to the Federal Government’s cash transfer and social protection programmes. In a letter dated September 5, 2026, signed by Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP requested that the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO) account for funds identified by the Auditor-General of the Federation as diverted or unaccounted for.

The allegations stem from the 2024 Annual Report of the Auditor-General, published on August 7, 2026, which examined transactions from January to December 2023. SERAP highlighted that ₦33.751 billion was transferred to 3,295,207 households in 35 states in 2023, but the NCTO failed to provide adequate evidence of fund receipt by beneficiaries.

SERAP demanded the publication of complete records of the cash transfers and an explanation for the lack of REMITA records requested by the Auditor-General.