Betta Edu: EFCC grills AGF Oluwatoyin Madein over involvement in N585m humanitarian ministry fraud

Oluwatoyin Madein, the Federation’s accountant general, has been questioned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over possible involvement in a N585.2 million scam involving Dr. Betta Edu, the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs.

The AGF was questioned by EFCC interrogators on Monday at the agency’s Jabi, Abuja, headquarters.

Our correspondent obtained information on Tuesday that Madein was questioned for about six hours before being released that evening without any conditions.

An excellent anti-graft source, who verified the information to our correspondent, said she was questioned on the transfer of N585.2 million in public funds from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to a government official’s personal bank account.

The source said,

“The Accountant General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein, has been invited and interrogated by the commission. She was grilled for over six hours on Monday over the payment of N585.2m from the National Social Investment office account to the UBA account of Bridget Oniyelu, the accountant of the Grants for Vulnerable Groups under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.

However, the AGF, in a statement, countered the claim by the suspended minister, while noting that allocations were released to self-accounting MDAs in line with the budget and such MDAs were responsible for the implementation of their projects and payments for such projects.

Edu was last week Tuesday grilled by operatives of the EFCC for over 10 hours over alleged N585m fraud in her ministry. She was suspended on Monday, January 8, by President Bola Tinubu, and is being accused of paying the humanitarian fund into a private account.

Also, Halima Shehu, the embattled Co-ordinator and Chief Executive Officer of the National Social Investment Programme Agency domiciled in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, is being probed by the EFCC over an alleged N44bn cash fraud.