A recent examination of the public payments portal, GovSpend, by SaharaReporters reveals that the Nigerian government has disbursed over N169 million for air travel expenses. These transactions were executed between September 3 and 11, 2024.
Alarmingly, the funds were deposited into private bank accounts, violating established fiscal regulations. On September 11, 2024, a payment of N5.1 million was made to Paul Enebi, designated for “payment of DTA, air ticket airport taxi and local running,” with the Federal Ministry of Environment responsible for the transaction.
In a similar case, on September 5, 2024, the Ministry of Finance transferred N7.9 million to Udo Okoko Ekanem for “air ticket” related to the OPEC 186th governing board session held in Vienna on December 14, 2023.
Additionally, on September 3, 2024, seven payments totaling N35 million were made to Abba Goni Yarema for “non-personal advances” that included costs for venue hiring, refreshments, hotel accommodations, stationery, computer accessories, air tickets for resource persons, and honoraria for a committee meeting, all facilitated by the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.
On the same day, Olufemi Micheal Oloruntola received N8.9 million as estacode for a round-trip air ticket to attend the IMO meeting in London for the third batch from July to December 2024.
Further payments from the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy included amounts to individuals such as Hafeez Babatunde Bombata (N16.5 million), Emionwele Nosa Marvis (N5.2 million), and several others, with amounts varying from N5.2 million to N44 million.
The reason for bypassing airline companies and instead directing payments to individual accounts remains unclear. Nigeria boasts at least 23 domestic carriers, as well as several international airlines operating within the country.
These transactions raise significant concerns, particularly in light of Nigeria’s Financial Regulations 2009, which stipulate in Chapter Seven, Section 713, that “personal money shall in no circumstances be paid into a government bank account, nor shall any public money be paid into a private account.” This situation emerges during a period of heightened scrutiny regarding financial transparency and accountability in Nigeria.
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