The Federal Government has disclosed that between 2017 – 2023, it was able to recover more than 83 billion naira, 609 million dollars, and 5.4 million euros in liquid assets.
This was made known by the Director of the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit (PICA), at the Ministry of Finance, Yusuf Sule, during a sensitization workshop titled “The Implementation of the Whistleblowing Policy in Nigeria: Issues, Challenges, and Way Forward,” in Abuja on Wednesday.
Sule’s statement revealed that all recoveries have been deposited into the Federal Government of Nigeria’s Assets Recovery Account, which is managed by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) and held at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
He said, “Following a useful tip by a whistle-blower in 2017, EFCC raided and successfully recovered the sums of $ 43.5 million, 27,800 pounds, and N23.2 million in Lagos (Flat 7b, No 16, Osborne Towers) in 2017.
“As proof of whistleblowing success story, which is attributable to the cooperation from patriotic members of the society who volunteered useful information, the earlier celebrated case of whistleblowing in Nigeria led to the recovery of the sums of N70,925,225,642.95, $9,777,439.99, and £21,500.00.”
Also speaking, the Minister of Finance and coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, emphasized that the Whistle-blowing Policy outlines explicit procedures for reporting financial misconduct.
He said, “It clearly outlines how investigations should be handled such that the whistle-blower is protected and the accused is equally treated by the rule of law.
“Permit me to state that it is our collective responsibility to create an environment where the Nigerian populace feels confident and protected in reporting unethical or illegal activities capable of jeopardising the overall development of the country.”
