A civil society group has asked a regional court to force the Federal Government to account for ₦78.8 billion in public funds earmarked for social protection programmes, which the Auditor-General says could not be properly verified.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) filed the suit last week at the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja, under suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/42/26.
It targets alleged diversion, irregular spending and failure to account for the money, which involves the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, the National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO) and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office (NASSCO).
The allegations come from the Auditor-General of the Federation’s 2024 Annual Report, published on 7 August 2026, which covers various periods between January 2023 and 31 December 2024.
The Auditor-General questioned about ₦33.751 billion reportedly sent to more than 3.2 million households across 35 states in 2023, because records needed to verify the payments and reconcile beneficiary lists were not provided.
The report also flagged ₦36.744 billion paid without prepayment audits and ₦4.616 billion in unsupported expenditure. Other questioned items included ₦350.182 million for enrolment, ₦89.511 million for store purchases and ₦17.422 million in diesel advances.
SERAP, represented by lawyers Kolawole Oluwadare and Kehinde Oyewumi, argues that the government has violated and continues to violate the rights to social security and an adequate standard of living, including food, clothing and housing.
It says failure to account for the funds, investigate and fix the problems harms the socio-economic rights of millions of Nigerians.
The group said it brought the case in the public interest under Article 9(4) of the ECOWAS Court Protocol, and that the issue is whether the government has met its obligations under human rights treaties to safeguard social protection money, investigate documented irregularities and provide effective remedies.
According to the suit, a formal cash transfer programme alone does not realise the right to social security if the State fails to keep reasonable systems for identifying beneficiaries, maintaining records, reconciling disbursements, monitoring spending, investigating irregularities and recovering losses.
SERAP also cited Articles 1, 2 and 21 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 9 of the UN Convention against Corruption.
It relied on two works by Kolawole Olaniyan, Corruption and Human Rights Law in Africa (Hart Publishing, 2014) and Ownership of Proceeds of Corruption in International Law (Oxford University Press, 2023), as persuasive academic authority.
After the report was published, SERAP issued a public statement and, in a letter dated 5 September 2026, urged President Bola Tinubu and relevant authorities to account for the questioned funds, publish audit records, investigate irregular spending, recover any money unlawfully spent or diverted, and sanction those responsible.
It also asked for payment and beneficiary records, verification documents and an explanation for the missing REMITA records. The group says the deadline it gave has passed without adequate action.
SERAP is asking the court for:
A declaration that failure to investigate and remedy the irregularities in the 2024 report, insofar as it impairs or risks impairing access to intended benefits, violates Nigeria’s human rights obligations.
An order directing the government, through the NCTO, NASSCO and other agencies, to provide a comprehensive and verifiable account of the questioned funds, including payment, beneficiary, verification and reconciliation records.
An order for an independent, prompt and effective investigation, recovery of funds improperly spent, diverted or lost, and appropriate legal or administrative action against those found responsible, in line with due process.
An order to strengthen financial accountability, beneficiary verification, auditing, reconciliation and oversight to prevent a repeat of the irregularities.
An order to ensure that eligible vulnerable persons and households receive the intended benefits and that any established harm to their rights is remedied.
The group also wants a perpetual injunction stopping the government from administering or disbursing cash transfer and social protection funds without adequate accountability, beneficiary verification, auditing and oversight.
No date has been fixed for the hearing.
