President Bola Tinubu took decisive action on Monday by suspending the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Betta Edu, in the wake of a widespread outcry over an alleged N585 million scandal.
The suspension was confirmed by Ajuri Ngelale, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, in a statement provided to journalists.
The statement read, “In line with his avowed commitment to uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability in the management of the commonwealth of Nigerians, President Bola Tinubu suspends the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, from office with immediate effect.”
President Tinubu had initiated a comprehensive inquiry into the alleged scandal on Sunday and pledged to “decisively punish” those found responsible for any breaches or infractions uncovered during the investigations.
Various groups and individuals, including the Peoples Democratic Party, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, Femi Falana, SAN, the Yoruba Youth Assembly, and other civil society groups, called for an unbiased probe into the leaked memo by Minister Betta Edu.
The memo instructed the Accountant-General of the Federation, Dr. Oluwatoyin Madein, to transfer N585 million into the private bank account of a project accountant in the ministry, Bridget Oniyelu.
Despite the minister’s assertion that the payment was intended for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states, the allegations sparked public outrage.
The Media Assistant to the Minister, Rasheed Olarenwaju, defended the payment, stating that it was legal within the civil service for such transactions to be made into the private accounts of staff members, particularly project accountants.