The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, is expected to interrogate the former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management, and Social Development, Sadiya Umar-Farouk, over an alleged N37.1 billion fraud.

A top EFCC source confirmed this yesterday.

Umar-Farouk served as minister under former President Muhammadu Buhari from August 2019 to May 29, 2023.

Last week, the former minister was invited by the anti-graft agency, following a probe launched into her activities in the ministry as minister.

She was being investigated over the sum of N37.1 billion that was allegedly laundered under her watch through a contractor, James Okwete.

A week after, the former minister was asked to appear before interrogators at the EFCC headquarters located at Jabi, Abuja, by 10:00 am.

”However, she has yet to appear at the EFCC headquarters,”said the source who craved anonymity.

According to the source, some other officials who worked with her have also been invited to provide an insight into how the affairs of the ministry were run in the last four years.

Recall that the planned interrogation of the former minister followed the immediate suspension of Halima Shehu as the chief executive officer and the national coordinator of the National Social Investment Programme Agency, NSIPA, by President Bola Tinubu.

Tinubu replaced Halima with the National N-Power programme Manager, Akindele Egbuwalo, in acting capacity, pending an investigation initiated into the activities of the embattled former head of the agency.

NSIPA, which is responsible for managing critical programmes, such as N-Power and Conditional Cash Transfer, is under the ministry of humanitarian affairs and had been under scrutiny in recent times.

It is unclear why Shehu was suspended, as no reason was given for her suspension.

It was, however, learned that the embattled NSIPA boss also has questions to answer and was, indeed, grilled by the EFCC on Tuesday.

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