The suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu, is scheduled to report at the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Abuja on Tuesday, January 9, it was learnt on Monday evening.
President Bola Tinubu ordered her suspension on Monday January 8, over allegation of a move to transfer N585 million cash to a private account, according to a leaked internal memo.
The minister’s invitation by the anti-graft agency followed her suspension and an order to the EFCC to thoroughly investigate all her activities since she was appointed a minister, a reliable source in the commission confided in our reporter.
In the meantime, a former minister in the Humanitarian Affairs Ministry, Sadiya Farouq, on Monday honoured the invitation by the EFCC.
It was learnt that she was questioned by the EFCC on allegations that she laundered N37.1 billion while serving as a minister in the former president Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet, a charge she reportedly denied vigorously.
Farouq, it was further learnt, was still at the office of the EFCC as of 6 pm on Monday.
A leaked memo revealed that Edu was involved in a N585 million disbursement scandal involving her ministry. The scandal has attracted widespread criticism from rights groups and activists, including opposition political parties, especially the People’s Democratic Party.
Edu’s scandal started when she signed a document requesting funds to be transferred to Oniyelu Bridget Mojisola’s personal account.
The document was sent to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation. The AGF has, however, said she did not honour the request.
