REVEALED: OAGF Paid N143M for Medical Travel and Treatment in the USA for SSA to President Tinubu

The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) made ₦143 million payment as a refund of medical expenses to Pastor Joseph Oluseyi Malomo, the Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu and State House Chaplain.

West Africa Weekly gathered this from the transactions of the federal government as published on the Open Treasury Portal and duplicated on the Govspend Portal with payment number a01-00009197 described as: “Refund of medical expenses to Pastor Joseph Oluseyi Malomo.”

WAW also looked into the legality of such transaction and found it violated two significant laws in Nigeria, including the Public Procurement Act of 2007, which section 58 of this Act states that any public officer who uses public funds for personal expenses is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of not less than five times the amount misappropriated or to imprisonment for a term of not less than five years or both.

Also, as set out in the Fifth Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the Code of Conduct for the Public Officers prohibits public officers from using their position or office to confer any undue advantage on themselves or anyone else, including using state funds for personal expenses.

Despite the stance of these laws, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation Headquarters on September 11, 2023, also paid an additional ₦9.1 million to Mrs Oshamo Titilayo Serah, being payment refunded for out-of-pocket expenses to the officer for the costs incurred in respect of Pastor Malomo who, on taxpayers naira, went for medical travel and treatment at the United States of America.

It will be recalled that amidst the pronounced absence of any semblance of administrative austerity over the past year, Nigerian taxpayers have been subjected to unprecedented financial pressure, with an unresolved inflation crisis, mass hunger and chronic insecurity across the country.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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