ABUJA — The Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAuGF) has raised concerns over the inability to verify ₦33.75 billion in cash transfers reportedly made to 3,295,207 households across 35 states under the Federal Government’s National Cash Transfer Programme in 2023.

The finding was contained in the 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance/Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government, which examined transactions of the National Cash Transfer Office (NTCO) in Abuja during the 2023 financial year.

According to the report, the money was electronically transferred to households and beneficiaries selected from the National Social Register (NSR) and enrolled on the National Beneficiary Register (NBR). However, auditors said the documents provided by the NTCO were insufficient to establish the identities of the individuals who actually received the funds.

Remita Records Denied Auditors

The Auditor-General said payment vouchers supporting the ₦33.75 billion transfers did not contain complete beneficiary details.

Auditors also said the Remita statement required to compare the actual recipients with names contained in the NSR and NBR was not made available.

The report stated that the absence of the records hindered the authentication of the payments and made it difficult to determine whether the funds went to genuine beneficiaries.

“All efforts to obtain access to the REMITA statement were obstructed and denied by NTCO accounts staff, thereby frustrating the audit process,” the report stated.

The Auditor-General consequently raised concerns over the possibility of payments being made to fictitious or ineligible beneficiaries and the potential loss of public funds.

The report recommended that the National Programme Manager appear before the relevant Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly to explain the expenditure and provide evidence that the intended beneficiaries received the money.

Where satisfactory evidence cannot be produced, the Auditor-General recommended that the affected funds be recovered and paid into the Federal Government Treasury.

The report further stated that the management of the NTCO did not respond to the audit query.

₦36.74bn Paid Without Prepayment Audit

The audit also flagged another ₦36.744 billion paid through 215 vouchers in December 2023 without the required prepayment audit.

The transactions, identified as SS, IDA and output-based payments, were reportedly processed before examination by the Internal Audit Unit.

“None of the paid vouchers were pre-audited or checked by the Internal Audit as required by extant regulations,” the report stated.

According to the Auditor-General, the procedure exposed public funds to the risk of misapplication or diversion.

The report recommended that officials responsible account for the ₦36.74 billion before the National Assembly.

Auditors Query ₦4.62bn in Missing Vouchers

Auditors also identified 101 transactions valued at ₦4.616 billion for which the corresponding paid vouchers were not provided for examination.

The payments were reportedly made from the agency’s S&S/IDA Cash Book for various expenditures.

The absence of the vouchers, according to the report, prevented auditors from adequately scrutinising the transactions.

The Auditor-General therefore recommended that the affected funds be accounted for or recovered and returned to the Treasury where satisfactory explanations and supporting documents are not provided.

₦350m State Disbursement Unaccounted For

Another finding concerned ₦3.09 billion released through 32 payments to states for the enrolment of beneficiaries who did not have bank accounts.

While documents relating to approximately ₦2.74 billion distributed to 34 states were presented, auditors said they could not account for the remaining ₦350.18 million.

The audit further found that some supporting vouchers did not adequately explain how the funds were utilised.

Beneficiary lists, attendance registers, photographs, enrolment reports and acknowledgements from recipients were among documents reportedly missing from some of the transactions.

The Auditor-General recommended recovery of the ₦350.18 million if the NTCO could not satisfactorily account for the funds.

₦393.71m Refund Also Queried

The audit report also examined ₦393.71 million reportedly returned by nine State Cash Transfer Units after planned beneficiary enrolment exercises could not be conducted.

The NTCO attributed the cancellation of the exercises to insecurity, disasters and other circumstances affecting the states involved.

However, auditors said the agency failed to provide sufficient evidence confirming that the refunded funds were actually credited to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

“No documents were presented by NCTO to confirm that the amount refunded… was credited into the CRF,” the report stated.

The auditors said Remita inflow statements and relevant payment slips needed to establish the refunds were unavailable.

They also found no evidence that the affected enrolment exercises were subsequently carried out.

₦280m Payment to Service Providers

The Auditor-General further queried ₦280.42 million paid as mobilisation fees to Payment Service Providers contracted to operate platforms for transferring funds to beneficiaries.

The amount represented a 30 per cent advance payment, but auditors said it was made without an Advance Payment Guarantee.

The procurement process used to engage the service providers was also questioned.

According to the report, the relevant files contained no evidence of pre-qualification, bidding or technical and financial evaluation to demonstrate compliance with procurement requirements.

The audit warned of the risk of paying for services that might not be executed and recommended recovery of the ₦280.42 million where appropriate.

₦89.51m Goods Missing From Store Records

Auditors also discovered that goods valued at ₦89.51 million purchased by the NTCO were not recorded in its store ledger.

The relevant payment vouchers reportedly lacked Store Receipt Vouchers and Store Issue Vouchers required to track the receipt and distribution of the items.

The audit further found that the agency’s store ledger had not been updated since 2020.

₦17.42m Diesel Purchases Queried

The final finding involved ₦17.42 million spent on diesel through cash advances issued to staff.

Auditors faulted the arrangement, arguing that purchases above the ₦200,000 procurement threshold should have been subjected to the appropriate procurement process.

The report also said the diesel purchases could not be physically sighted or traced to the agency’s stores.

According to the audit, the procurement approach also potentially deprived the Federal Government of approximately ₦2.18 million in Value Added Tax and Withholding Tax.

Auditor-General Demands Accountability

Across the eight findings, the Auditor-General said the management of the National Cash Transfer Office failed to respond to the audit queries.

The report therefore called for explanations and supporting documentation for the transactions and recommended recovery of funds where officials are unable to satisfactorily account for the expenditure.

The findings place renewed attention on the financial controls surrounding Nigeria’s social intervention programmes, particularly the systems used to identify beneficiaries, transfer public funds and independently verify that the intended recipients actually received the money.

 

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