Anti-corruption activists have urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,EFCC, to open a full-scale investigation into the 2024/2025 financial operations of five local government areas in Kogi State—Adavi, Bassa, Dekina, Idah and Yagba East—over allegations of massive fund mismanagement.
The call was made on Tuesday in Abuja during a joint news conference organised by the African Transparency Initiative,ATI, and the Community Outreach for Development and Welfare Advocacy.
The groups said the suspected irregularities involve statutory allocations running into tens of billions of naira meant to improve local infrastructure and basic services.
ATI’s Executive Director, Comrade Taiwo Otitolaye, said the pilot assessment of the five LGAs indicated that each one was entitled to between N3 billion and N5 billion for the 2024/2025 fiscal year.
He said the funds were expected to drive community development across sectors such as roads, health care and water supply, yet most communities still grapple with failing infrastructure and inadequate social amenities.
He said the organisations convened the briefing to place documented findings before the public, mobilise civil society, and demand swift intervention by the EFCC.
He explained that the combined allocation for the five LGAs for the fiscal year stood at N15 billion to N25 billion, with only 15 to 26 per cent used for salaries and statutory overheads. The remaining 74 to 84 per cent—estimated at N11 billion to N21 billion—was not reflected in service delivery outcomes.
The groups’ fieldwork showed widespread dissatisfaction among residents. Eighty-seven per cent of 1,200 respondents described service delivery as very poor, while 20 per cent considered their councils practically nonexistent.
Verification visits reported poorly functioning primary health centres, a lack of tarred roads and only 3 per cent completion of water projects.
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Otitolaye said there was a pattern of diversion of public funds by former and serving local government chairmen, treasurers and other financial officers.
He urged the EFCC to invite key officials from the five LGAs for questioning and conduct an on-site financial review. He also called on citizens to show greater civic engagement by demanding accountability from local authorities.
He emphasised the importance of both the “demand side” and “supply side” of accountability, stressing that citizens must strengthen their oversight role while institutions such as the Fiscal Responsibility Commission step up their monitoring responsibilities.
Comrade Lukman Adefolahan, Chief Operating Officer of the 21st Century Community Empowerment for Youth and Women Initiative, said his organisation had submitted a petition to the EFCC to ensure prompt action.
He urged the commission and the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation to collaborate more effectively, warning that delayed audits weaken oversight.
Adefolahan noted that the country still lacks updated audit reports for 2022, 2023 and 2024, despite being in 2025, and called on the National Assembly and relevant agencies to support the Auditor-General’s office to deliver timely reviews of public spending.
He also urged the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms to strengthen its coordination of inter-agency efforts and actively process petitions from citizens.
ATI Country Director, Comrade Shina Loremikan, said the petition submitted to the EFCC Chairman’s office should trigger immediate action. He stressed that both national and international observers are monitoring Nigeria’s response to corruption allegations at the grassroots level.
The groups vowed to continue engaging civic actors, media organisations and oversight bodies to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of public resources across the country’s 774 local government areas.
NAN
