The National Cash Transfer Office has rejected allegations that the Federal Government failed to account for ₦33.75bn transferred electronically to beneficiaries under its cash transfer programme.
NCTO Challenges Auditor-General’s Findings
The Auditor-General for the Federation had questioned the transfers, saying auditors were unable to establish that the money reached genuine beneficiaries.
The audit covered transactions involving 3,295,207 households and beneficiaries across 35 states in 2023. Auditors said payment vouchers did not contain complete beneficiary information and that the REMITA statement needed to verify the recipients was not presented.
However, the NCTO said the audit observation should not be interpreted as proof that the money was stolen, diverted or lost.
“An audit query or observation is not, by itself, a final determination that public funds were stolen, diverted, misappropriated or lost,” the office said.
The agency maintained that the payments were processed through its established electronic payment system and that beneficiary records were digitally maintained.
Office Denies Blocking Auditors
The NCTO also rejected claims that its officials prevented auditors from accessing REMITA payment records.
According to the office, emails and other documents exist showing that beneficiary information and payment records were sent to the audit team for verification.
“Beneficiary records underlying the transfers are maintained electronically and can be subjected to data-level reconciliation against the corresponding electronic payment records,” it said.
The agency said it remains willing to cooperate with oversight authorities and provide documents required to reconcile the disputed transactions.
It also urged the public to distinguish between audit queries requiring clarification and confirmed cases of fraud or financial loss.
