The National Cash Transfer Office has denied claims made in a report by the Auditor-General for the Federation that the Federal Government was unable to present adequate proof that N33.75 billion in electronic cash transfers were made to legitimate recipients.
In a statement provided to our correspondent on Wednesday, the NCTO management insisted that the disputed funds were transferred to beneficiaries listed in the National Beneficiary Register via the established payment architecture, characterizing the interpretation of the audit observations as materially incomplete.
Additionally, the NCTO refuted the claim that its representatives prevented auditors from accessing the REMITA payment records, stating that independent verification of documentary proof, such as emails demonstrating the transmission of beneficiary data and payment information, was possible.
Following the release of the 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance/Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, following the Auditor-General’s conclusions on September 5, 2026.
The audit examined National Cash Transfer Office activities for the 2023 fiscal year and found eight audit queries totaling billions of naira, according to the report.
The auditors reported that N33.751 billion had been electronically distributed to 3,295,207 households and beneficiaries in 35 states. However, they claimed that the payment vouchers lacked complete beneficiary information and that the REMITA statement needed to match the names on the National Social Register and National Beneficiary Register with those who received the funds was not provided.
However, the NCTO stated in their thorough response that the audit observation should not be taken to mean that N33.75 billion was lost, misappropriated, or stolen. The Office emphasized that a final conclusion of fraud or financial loss differs from an audit observation that calls for explanation or supporting documentation.
NCTO replied, “An audit query or observation is not, by itself, a final determination that public funds were stolen, diverted, misappropriated, or lost.” It further stated that in order to draw firm conclusions, audit observations typically call for management responses, review of supporting documentation, and reconciliation.
The NCTO responded to the main accusation by stating that the transfers were made electronically to designated beneficiaries in accordance with the program’s predetermined payment architecture.
It clarified that beneficiaries were paid through beneficiary records kept in the program’s information systems and subject to identification, validation, and authorization measures rather than only based on names submitted for payment.
According to the NCTO, the program’s electronic format allowed for the digital maintenance of millions of beneficiaries’ records, eliminating the need for them to be physically printed and affixed to individual payment vouchers where the underlying electronic audit trail was accessible.
According to the agency, “beneficiary records underlying the transfers are maintained electronically and can be subject to data-level reconciliation against the corresponding electronic payment records.”
More importantly, the NCTO claimed to have documentation proving that the audit team received the National Beneficiary Register.
The NCTO management claims that the auditors received the 2023 NBR beneficiary list by email on April 18, 2025, at 11:48 am, and the 2024 and 2025 NBR records on April 21, 2026, at 6:25 pm.
It claimed that the emails could be independently confirmed and had identifiable dates and times. As a result, it denied any allegation that it concealed beneficiary records from the auditors on purpose.
The project accountant has kept email communication proving that the pertinent REMITA payment report was provided with the audit team, according to the NCTO, which also specifically refuted the claim that its accounts authorities blocked access to the REMITA statement.
It stated that in order to facilitate independent verification, the letters and clarification would be made accessible. “An objective documentary basis for determining whether the payment information was made available during the audit process is provided by contemporaneous email evidence demonstrating transmission of the REMITA report,” NCTO continued.
As a result, the cash transfer office said that the accusation of intentional obstruction was at odds with the documentary correspondence it had.
It argued that it was not reasonable to conclude that millions of beneficiary records did not exist because they were not physically printed and tied to individual vouchers.
Additionally, the office addressed the Auditor-General’s inquiry regarding 101 payments from the S&S/IDA Cash Book totaling N4.62 billion. According to the audit, the relevant paid vouchers were not submitted for review, and it was suggested that the funds be recovered or accounted for before being transmitted to the Treasury.
Nonetheless, NCTO claimed to keep track of payment vouchers and accompanying documentation for their expenses. It pointed out that the audit observation combined 101 transactions into the N4.62 billion amount without giving its management enough transaction-level information to pinpoint the exact vouchers that were allegedly left out.
A schedule detailing the specific payments, voucher numbers, dates, payees, descriptions, and amounts has been requested by the office. According to the statement, this would make it possible to reconcile every transaction with its matching voucher and supporting paperwork.
Additionally, N350.18 million released to states for beneficiary enrollment was rejected by the NCTO as unexplained funds. According to the Auditor-General, supporting documentation for N2.74 billion of the N3.09 billion granted to states for the enrollment of unbanked beneficiaries was made accessible, leaving N350.18 million without sufficient evidence.
Beneficiary lists, photos, attendance records, enrollment reports, and acknowledgments that were missing were also mentioned in the audit. NCTO stated that it was still available for transaction-by-transaction reconciliation and was resubmitting pertinent material.
Additionally, it contested the claim that N36.74 billion in payments were wrongfully issued due to the lack of a prepayment audit. According to reports, the Internal Audit Unit performed post-payment inspections after 215 vouchers totaling N36.74 billion were paid in December 2023 without internal audit or prepayment checks.
According to NCTO, the relevant World Bank Project Appraisal Document specifically called for an internal audit mechanism that eschewed the traditional prepayment audit method.
The directive mandated that the Internal Audit Unit conduct conventional compliance and non-financial/operational audits “without adopting the prepayment audit system,” according to the Office.
Therefore, it contended that the use of post-payment audit under the approved project framework should not be used as proof that the N36.74 billion was paid incorrectly without the relevant context.
Regarding the N89.51 million storage and procurement transactions that the Auditor-General had inquired about, NCTO stated that the sum was made up of several transactions and should not be regarded as a single, uniform expenditure.
Additionally, the NCTO refuted any notion that the N280.421 million that was advanced to Payment Service Providers was yet unpaid. The advances were made against insurance bonds related to the contracts, according to NCTO.
It stated that after the World Bank examined the procurement and underlying activity, the contracts were canceled due to issues with compliance and the fact that the activity was no longer necessary after the project was restructured.
The agency stated that REMITA/reference papers proving the reimbursements were accessible and that the advances were later recovered from the payment service providers.
It argued that any inquiries about the initial procurement procedure have to be kept apart from the question of whether the funds ultimately resulted in a loss for the government.
The agency added that nine state cash transfer units that were unable to carry out the scheduled activities due to insecurity, natural catastrophes, and other operational limitations refunded N393.71 million in unused monies.
NCTO stated that REMITA documentation demonstrates the reimbursements had been supplied for verification, refuting allegations that NCTO failed to present proof that the amounts were credited to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
The office also addressed the N17.422 million diesel purchase remark, stating that the diesel supply was handled by a business or service provider and that pertinent vouchers and supporting documentation were available and had been submitted for review.
Although it welcomed criticism of its operations, the currency transfer agency advised caution when interpreting audit findings.
It contended that “a recovered advance should not be presented as an outstanding financial loss; that a request for additional documents does not, by itself, establish that money is missing; and that electronically maintained beneficiary records should not be treated as nonexistent merely because they were not printed.”
Additionally, it insisted that before the underlying amounts are classified as unaccounted for, reimbursements backed by electronic payment proof should be reconciled. The office emphasized that it is still dedicated to openness and would keep working with the Auditor-General and other oversight organizations.
It asked the public and media to discern between established findings of fraud, diversion, misappropriation, or loss of public monies and audit observations that call for management response and reconciliation.
