Nigerian commission recovers 5.3 billion naira from local government accounts

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) recovered over N5.3bn from local government accounts across seven states and the Federal Capital Territory in Nigeria.

The commission achieved this total by reviewing the finances of these local government areas. Dr Musa Aliyu, the chairman of the ICPC, stated that these recoveries highlight the scale of financial risks at the grassroots level.

To address these risks, the commission is partnering with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) to launch a pilot program. This initiative aims to make all 774 local government areas in Nigeria publish their financial records, budgets, and procurement processes on official websites. The move follows a July 2024 Supreme Court judgment that granted local government councils financial autonomy and direct payment of statutory allocations.

The ICPC and NITDA plan to use these digital platforms to allow residents and journalists to monitor public spending. NITDA will provide the technical infrastructure and website templates, while the ICPC will set the content standards and accountability framework. Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule launched the pilot program in Nasarawa State. He directed local councils to appoint dedicated officers to ensure that the information uploaded to these websites remains accurate and updated.

The governor also invited the commission and NITDA to extend this transparency initiative to state governments.