The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has alleged that almost 75 per cent of government funds released for religious pilgrimages were stolen by officials involved in managing the programmes.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, made the allegation while speaking at a meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) in Abuja.
Olukoyede said the allegation came from previous EFCC investigations into the agencies responsible for Christian and Muslim pilgrimages. He described some of the findings from those investigations as “mind-boggling.”
According to the EFCC chairman, investigators also discovered alleged conflicts of interest involving some officials who reportedly established private companies in countries where Nigerian pilgrims travelled.
However, Olukoyede did not identify the specific pilgrimage programme, location, period, amount of money involved or the officials allegedly responsible in the remarks reported from the meeting. The 75 per cent figure should therefore be presented as an allegation by the EFCC chairman, rather than a court-established finding.
Monafrika’s Take
The allegation puts the spotlight on the need for stronger accountability in the management of public funds allocated to pilgrimage programmes.
Government agencies handling such funds are expected to maintain clear financial records and ensure that money released for public purposes is used for those purposes.
Monafrika will continue to follow developments around the allegation and any further details from the EFCC or the affected pilgrimage agencies.
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