₦airaland Forum

Alleged $1.3m, N746.6m Humanitarian Ministry Fraud: Court Issues Arrest Warrant against Sadiya, Perm Sec

Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court Abuja on Thursday, April 16, 2026 issued a warrant of arrest against a former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Faruoq and a Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Bashir Nura Alkali.

Farouq and Alkali are scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday before the court but failed to appear. Only the third defendant, Sani Nafiu Mohammed was present in court.

The trio are to be arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on a twenty-one count charge bordering on breach of trust, abuse of office, fraudulent award of contract and conversion of public funds of about $1,300,000( One Million, Three Hundred Thousand United States Dollars, and N746,574,303( Seven Hundred and Forty Six Million, Five Hundred and Seventy Four Naira, Three Hundred and Three Naira)

Count one of the charge reads: “That you Sadiya Umar Farouq, While being Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, and Bashir Nura Alkali while being the permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, between 8 May 2021 and 22 September 2022, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, and in such capacity entrusted with certain property to wit, an aggregate sum of $1,300,000.00(One Million, Three Hundred Thousand Dollars), committed criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property when you fraudulently converted the said sum to your personal benefit and which sum was meant to be refunded to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development by Visual ICT Limited, being excess funds paid by the Ministry under National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO) for the validation of Rapid Response Register beneficiaries and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 315 of the Penal Code and Punishable under the same Section.”

Prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, SAN, informed the court that the charge had been filed since December 15, 2025, but the first and second defendants could not be served.

“We could not arraign them on 15 December, because we could not produce them but their lawyers in court promised that they would produce the defendants but we didn’t see them until your lordship made an order for the state service. The defendants have now been served, my lord, only the third defendant has reported to the Commission when his surety was contacted. The third defendant’s surety is also in court", he said.

Rotimi further informed the court the first defendant wrote to the Commission that she was going for a medical check-up in Saudi Arabia in 2024 and her passport was released to her for the medical check-up.

“My lord, since that passport was released to her, she has not returned the passport to the Commission . We do not have the medical report in Saudi Arabia till date. Only this morning, my friend served me with an affidavit of fact, the learned senior counsel for the first defendant, wherein the deponent claimed that the first defendant took ill, my lord, all the medical reports which my friend attached to the affidavit of facts were issued after the charge had been filed. No medical report was issued or shown to us for the approved journey and the release of her passport”, he said

Counsel to the first defendant, Abdul Ibrahim, SAN, informed the court that the reason for her absence was ill health. He also prayed the court to accept an affidavit of fact he sought to tender, but the court rejected the application.

nlfpmod:
EFCC Secures Arrest Warrant for Ex-Humanitarian Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq and Perm Sec Over $1.3m and N746.6m Fraud




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Mrchippychappy:
is she the one that fed 600 million children when schools were closed during Covid-19?

BrickandLace:
Seems like it.

That was outrageous.

Mrchippychappy:
Yep, just looked it up again. She's the one. Funny how times flies, she made that ridiculous claim back in 2020, 6 yrs ago

Elusive001:
I remember the days of "Sai Baba". While thieves stole, hungry men gave them covering fire by creaming "sai baba".

You can imagine the corruption these sorry peeps hailed

Cc
MANNA_BBQGRILLS
NgeneUkwenu
Madridguy
Biodun556
Helinues
Throwback
Sarki
Mynd44
Etc

I remember when we were raising alarm. The above peeps called us all bad names. They defended the corruption with everything in them.

givedemwotowoto:
The next government will be overwhelmed when it sees what went on within this government, why Nigerians faced extreme insecurity despite security budget. Why Nigerians faced extreme hardship despite all the money from subsidy removal + monumental borrowing.