-
SERAP has sued the Federal Government at the ECOWAS Court over alleged diversion, irregular expenditure and failure to account for more than ₦78.8 billion allocated to federal cash-transfer and social-protection programmes.
-
The group says the Auditor-General questioned ₦33.751 billion reportedly transferred to over 3.2 million households across 35 states.
-
SERAP argues that failure to account for the funds, investigate the irregularities and recover any money unlawfully spent threatens the rights of vulnerable Nigerians to social security and an adequate standard of living.
-
The organisation wants the ECOWAS Court to compel the government to produce payment and beneficiary records, investigate the alleged irregularities.
October 25, (THEWILL) – The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Government over “the alleged diversion, irregular expenditure and failure to account for over ₦78.8 billion in public funds involving the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO).”
The allegations are contained in the Auditor-General of the Federation’s 2024 Annual Report, published on August 7, 2026, with the findings covering various periods between January 2023 and December 31, 2024.
In suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/42/26, filed last week before the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja, SERAP is seeking a declaration that the Federal Government’s failure to account for more than ₦78.8 billion allocated to cash-transfer and social-protection programmes is unlawful and violates Nigeria’s international human rights obligations.
The organisation is also seeking a declaration that the government’s failure to ensure the lawful administration of public funds allocated to cash-transfer programmes intended for vulnerable households undermines rights protected under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
SERAP further wants the court to issue a perpetual injunction restraining the Federal Government from administering or disbursing cash-transfer and social-protection funds without adequate financial accountability, beneficiary verification, auditing and oversight mechanisms consistent with Nigeria’s international human rights obligations.
According to SERAP, the alleged failure to properly administer the social-protection funds violates the rights to social security and an adequate standard of living, including access to food, clothing and housing.
It argued that failure to account for substantial public funds allocated to social protection and to investigate and remedy identified deficiencies undermines the socio-economic rights of millions of Nigerians.
SERAP said the funds were intended to benefit more than 3.2 million households across 35 states, whose access to financial assistance had been affected by the issues raised by the Auditor-General.
The suit, filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare and Kehinde Oyewumi, contends that failure to investigate the alleged ₦78.8 billion cash-transfer scandal, account for the questioned funds and recover any amounts unlawfully spent violates Nigeria’s obligations to protect the human rights of vulnerable households.
“SERAP brings this public-interest case to protect the interests of affected households and ensure accountability for public funds allocated for their benefit. SERAP submits that failures to account for public funds allocated to socio-economic rights, coupled with a failure to take effective corrective action, engages the State’s human-rights obligations. Cash-transfer programmes help address extreme poverty and enable vulnerable people to meet their basic needs,” the organisation said.
Auditor-General Questions Billions
Giving details of the alleged irregularities, SERAP said the Auditor-General’s report questioned approximately ₦33.751 billion reportedly transferred to more than 3.2 million households across 35 states in 2023 because adequate records to verify the payments and reconcile beneficiary records were not provided.
According to the suit, the audit report also identified ₦36.744 billion in payments made without prepayment audits and ₦4.616 billion in unsupported expenditure.
Other questioned payments included ₦350.182 million for enrolment, ₦89.511 million for store purchases and ₦17.422 million in diesel advances.
SERAP said it brought the public-interest action under Article 9(4) of the ECOWAS Court Protocol to protect affected households and ensure accountability for public funds intended for social protection.
It said the question before the regional court is whether the Federal Government has discharged its obligations under applicable human rights treaties to safeguard resources allocated for social protection, investigate documented financial irregularities, provide effective remedies and ensure that the resources are used for their intended purposes.
The organisation stressed that the Auditor-General is constitutionally responsible for auditing and reporting on the public accounts of the Federation as well as offices and agencies of the Federal Government.
It argued that the Auditor-General’s findings, recorded in annual reports submitted to the National Assembly, constitute important official records concerning federal public expenditure.
SERAP also relied on Article 1 of the African Charter, which it said imposes an obligation on Nigeria to recognise and give effect to rights protected under the Charter through appropriate legislative and other measures.
It further cited Article 2 of the Charter on equality and non-discrimination, arguing that failures in administering or verifying social-protection programmes could result in discriminatory exclusion or unequal access to benefits.
“The Nigerian government has the obligation to take effective measures to prevent and address corruption and related misuse of public resources. The government has failed to take appropriate measures in response to the allegations made by the Auditor-General,” SERAP argued.
According to the organisation, the right to social security cannot be effectively realised simply by establishing a formal cash-transfer programme where the government fails to maintain reasonable systems for identifying beneficiaries, keeping records, reconciling disbursements, monitoring expenditure, investigating irregularities and remedying losses.
SERAP Says September Demand Went Unanswered
Providing background to the suit, SERAP said that following publication of the Auditor-General’s report, it issued a public statement and subsequently wrote President Bola Tinubu and relevant authorities on September 5, 2026, demanding action over the questioned funds.
The organisation asked the President and relevant government agencies to account for the funds, publish audit records, investigate irregular expenditure, recover any money unlawfully spent or diverted and take appropriate action against those responsible.
SERAP also requested payment and beneficiary records, verification documents and an explanation for missing REMITA records.
According to the organisation, the deadline it gave the government to address the Auditor-General’s findings expired without adequate action.
It said the alleged financial irregularities and the government’s failure to adequately address them raised human rights concerns, particularly regarding the rights to social security, an adequate standard of living and economic, social and cultural development.
“The government must properly manage public funds allocated for social protection in accordance with its human rights obligations and take reasonable measures to ensure that vulnerable households receive their intended benefits,” SERAP stated.
It added that the Auditor-General’s findings concerning beneficiary verification, prepayment audits, supporting documents and financial reconciliation raised serious questions about whether the funds were properly managed and reached the vulnerable households for whom they were intended.
SERAP also relied on Articles 1 and 21 of the African Charter and Article 9 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption, arguing that the provisions require effective measures to protect people’s rights and resources, ensure transparent public financial management, investigate irregularities and recover public funds where losses or improper expenditure are established.
It further cited Kolawole Olaniyan’s Corruption and Human Rights Law in Africa, published by Hart Publishing in 2014, and Ownership of Proceeds of Corruption in International Law, published by Oxford University Press in 2023, as academic authorities on the impact of corruption on human rights, public resources, victims’ rights, accountability and international legal remedies.
“These works support principles grounded in applicable human rights treaties and jurisprudence,” SERAP said.
The organisation maintained that the Auditor-General’s findings should not be treated merely as administrative irregularities where public funds allocated for social protection may have been lost, improperly spent or left unaccounted for and the government fails to take effective corrective action.
It argued that failures in public financial management that impair protected human rights may engage the right to an effective remedy, while failure to adequately investigate, account for and recover misused funds and provide appropriate remedies could constitute a continuing failure to meet Nigeria’s human rights obligations.
SERAP Seeks Five Orders
SERAP is asking the ECOWAS Court to declare that failure to take effective measures to investigate and remedy the financial irregularities identified in the Auditor-General’s 2024 Annual Report, where such failures impair or risk impairing access to intended benefits, violates Nigeria’s international human rights obligations.
It is also seeking an order directing the Federal Government, through NCTO, NASSCO and other relevant agencies, to provide a comprehensive and verifiable account of the questioned funds, including relevant payment, beneficiary, verification and reconciliation records.
SERAP wants the court to direct the government to conduct an independent, prompt and effective investigation into the irregularities and recover any public funds established to have been improperly spent, diverted or lost.
It also wants appropriate legal or administrative action taken, in accordance with due process, against any persons found responsible.
The organisation is further asking the court to order the government to strengthen financial accountability, beneficiary verification, auditing, reconciliation and oversight mechanisms to prevent a recurrence of irregularities in federal cash-transfer and social-protection programmes.
Finally, SERAP wants an order compelling the government to take effective measures to ensure that eligible vulnerable persons and households receive the social-protection benefits intended for them and that any established adverse effects on their protected rights are appropriately remedied.
Nigeria’s federal cash-transfer programmes form part of the government’s social-protection framework designed to provide financial assistance to poor and vulnerable households.
The programmes have assumed greater significance amid rising living costs and economic hardship, making questions over beneficiary verification, payment records and accountability for funds earmarked for vulnerable Nigerians a major public-interest concern.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
Felix Ifijeh is a journalist with years of professional reporting experience. Known for his keen news sense, compelling storytelling and commitment to accurate, impactful reporting, he has built a reputation for turning leads into clear, engaging, and well-structured reports that resonate with readers. His work reflects deep newsroom experience and a commitment to accurate, impactful journalism.
