A coalition of over 70 labour and civil society organisations under the umbrella of *Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB)* has called for an urgent investigation into the alleged diversion of Nigeria’s \$3.4 billion COVID-19 loan obtained from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2020.
The call was made via a statement signed by ASCAB chairperson and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), on Sunday. The group urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to probe the alleged misuse of the loan.
The IMF had recently disclosed that Nigeria is expected to pay \$30 million annually in charges and fees for the loan, which was meant to cushion the economic blow from the COVID-19 pandemic and falling oil prices.
According to ASCAB, a 2020 audit report released by the Auditor-General’s office in January 2024 exposed several financial irregularities in the handling of the funds. These include unauthorized transfers, lack of documentation, and suspicious reclassification of funds by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The report noted that:
- $2.4 billion of the loan was transferred to the CBN’s account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
- The remaining funds were moved to the CBN’s account at the Bank of China in Shanghai.
- Both tranches were later redirected to other banks like the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) without approvals.
- These funds were reclassified as part of the CBN’s external reserves, enabling interest earnings contrary to the emergency spending purpose.
Additionally, ASCAB highlighted that the Ministry of Finance requested the monetisation of \$700 million to support the 2020 budget. A week later, N265.65 billion was debited using a higher exchange rate than officially approved.
The group also cited a suspicious deduction of a 2% commission on the monetised amount, though the funds were public. The audit report claimed that at the end of 2020, \$2.7 billion of the loan remained unmonetised and unaccounted for.
ASCAB is also calling on the IMF to:
- Suspend the collection of all charges and fees on the loan.
- Investigate why its management failed to ensure the loan was used for its intended emergency purpose.
In a strong criticism of the Nigerian legislature, ASCAB said the National Assembly failed in its constitutional oversight by not reviewing the audit report through its public accounts committees.
“This amounts to aiding corruption and violates Section 85(5) of the Nigerian Constitution,” ASCAB said.
The coalition is demanding the recovery of all diverted funds, sanctions for involved officials, and transparency in future financial dealings.
