Justice Chinyere E. Nwecheonwu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Kuje has postponed the arraignment of Prof. Usman Yusuf, the former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). The case, initially scheduled for Thursday, January 30, 2025, will now be heard on February 3, 2025.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) confirmed the new arraignment date in a statement issued on Thursday.
Chronicles Reporters had earlier reported that EFCC operatives arrested Yusuf on Wednesday before presenting him in court the following day on charges of fraud. However, the arraignment was delayed to allow for amendments to the charges.
During the court proceedings, Yusuf’s lawyer, Isah Dokto Haruna, who represented the lead counsel O.I. Habeeb, SAN, requested bail for the defendant. However, the judge declined the request due to the postponed arraignment. Justice Nwecheonwu then ruled that Yusuf should remain in EFCC custody until the new court date.
According to sources, Yusuf was taken into custody after a team of EFCC operatives arrived at his residence in large numbers.
“A truckload of EFCC operatives stormed Prof. Usman Yusuf’s residence and arrested him,” a source disclosed.
The former NHIS boss has been under scrutiny since the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. A petition submitted to the Presidency and the Federal Ministry of Health had accused him of multiple infractions, including financial misconduct.
The petition detailed 12 allegations, ranging from mismanagement of funds to nepotism and insubordination. Among the claims was the alleged misappropriation of ₦860 million designated for training in 2016, irregular contract awards, and granting a media consultancy deal to his brother.
Further accusations stated that Yusuf authorized payments to contractors before goods were supplied, violated NHIS regulations by granting financial aid to an individual not enrolled in the scheme while denying the same assistance to a staff member who later passed away, and approved ₦210 million for electronic media operations without due process.
Additionally, he was accused of exceeding the ₦2.5 million spending limit without seeking approval from the supervising ministry, supplying substandard products, inflating contract costs by over 100%, using former President Buhari’s name to justify insubordination, and imposing a ₦7.2 million fee for Health Management Organization (HMO) registration.
In May 2024, Yusuf made headlines when he strongly criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration, saying it had failed to fulfill its promise of “Renewed Hope.” Speaking in an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, he claimed that the government’s policies had deepened economic hardship for Nigerians.
“People have lost hope. It pains me to see our people lining up to collect cups of palliatives. Renewed Hope has turned into hopelessness. The last one year has been nothing but deception, destitution, and hopelessness,” he said.
He further criticized the government’s economic management, arguing that it had driven millions into poverty and forced countless children out of school due to their parents’ inability to afford tuition.
“From next week, they will start telling us their propaganda. What have they done to benefit the ordinary people? In just one year, they have pushed millions into multidimensional poverty and forced millions of children out of school,” he lamented.
Yusuf also took a swipe at Tinubu’s economic team, describing them as “tax collectors” rather than economists.
“Taxation does not grow the economy; only production does,” he stated.
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