HURIWA wants EFCC to investigate fire outbreak at Head of Service office,*

….Says failure to cashback capital components of budgets is massive economic and financial crimes*

By George Mgbeleke

Pro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has tasked the anti-graft agency: the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to investigate the inexplicable inferno this morning at the offices of the Head of Service of the Federation just as the Rights group challenged the EFCC and ICPC to investigate both the Ministry of Finance and the Accountant General of the Federation to ascertain the whereabouts of the trillions of Naira meant for capital components of Federal ministries in the last two years.

In a statement signed and made to journalists on Monday, National Coordinator, of HURIWA, Comrade Emmanuel NnadozieOnwubiko, “Refusal to fund capital budgets by this federal administration is not just a new kind of sophisticated economic and financial crimes but constitutes a crime against humanity given that hundreds of indigent Nigerians who have no funds to pay for private medical expenses or embark on foreign medical tourism as president Tinubu has consistently done, these unfortunate Citizens have been left to die from treatable diseases such as Malaria due to lack of medication at primary health care centres run by the federal ministry of health which got only N36 million out of the over N230 billion approved for capital budget in 2025 according to a testimony at the National Assembly by the minister of Health Doctor Pate.

On the frequent fir outbreaks in government offices especially in finance departments of such government institutions which HURIWA attributes to sabotage by government officials and politicians, also asked thus: “Why are there fires all the time in strategic ministries and government agencies since 2015 till date and unfortunately there has been no determination of the causes of such mysterious fires in places like the Corporate Affairs Commission and offices of the Accountant General of the Federation which occurred during the Muhammadu Buhari’s highly corrupt federal administration? Since this Tinubu’s government came, there have been suspicious fires in strategic offices especially offices housing documents that deals with procurements. Now it is the turn of thd Head of service of the Federation. Which office is next?”

HURIWA also carpeted the EFCC and the ICPC for maintaining sealed lips on the shocking failures by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to fund capital projects since he came to office and just as HURIWA categorised the failures to cashback capital components of budgets as massive economic crimes because we are told every year that Appropriation Bills are passed into Law and government goes cap in hand to all kinds of places borrowing funds the budgets.

“Nigerian Customs and many other heavy revenues generating agencies often inundate the public with public announcements of hitting their yearly targets or surpassing such targets running into Trillions of Naira. The federal government services loans borrowed to fund the budget. So why are the capital components of the budgets not been implemented which represents a huge financial crimes but the EFCC does like it is not their business? The National Assembly has also exposed these heists but the EFCC and ICPC behave like BOYS SCOUTS OR BOYS BRIGADE OF PRESIDENT TINUBU.

HURIWA recalled that On February 25th 2026, a member of thd Federal House of Representatives Mr. Alex Mascot Ikwechegh, member representing Aba North/Aba South Federal Constituency and a key member of the Aids and Loans Committee confronted the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, over the unexplained disappearance of capital project funds, despite trillions of naira in loans and record-breaking revenues.

Observers said that what began as a routine budget defence quickly escalated into a high stakes interrogation when Representative Ikwechegh revealed a disturbing pattern:
Hon. Ikwechegh revealed that N1.15 trillion had been raised and specifically approved by the National Assembly to fund 30% of the 2025 capital budget
Hon. Ikwechegh went further to detail that Multiple loans had been secured, including: $1.2 billion for digital infrastructure, $500 million for economic stimulus, $500 million for MSMEs (approved December 2025), $500 million from the African Development Bank (November 2025) for economic governance and energy transition, and a recent executive request for $21 million, 15 billion Yen, and 4 billion Euros

Hon. Ikwechegh queried why despite this avalanche of borrowed money and strong revenue performance by agencies like FIRS, Customs, and others, capital projects across Nigeria remain at zero disbursement.
Hon. Ikwechegh, who was visibly frustrated, walked the Minister through the figures with surgical precision: he said to the minister, With all these funds put together, I want you to enlighten us on why the 2024 budget is yet to be fully implemented, and why the 2025 budget has only been funded 34%—most of which is recurrent expenditure?

Hon. Ikwechegh asked the minister to further enlighten us on why our capital projects still remain at zero?
When pressed, Minister Wale Edun shifted responsibility to the Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, claiming she handled disbursements.
This deflection infuriated committee members who asked; If the substantive Minister of Finance cannot account for ₦1.15 trillion approved for capital projects, who can?
Lawmakers shouted at the committee sitting, demanding answers. Some called for the ministers to resign. The committee had no choice but to adjourn the hearing to Thursday, February 26th, summoning the Minister of State to provide the clarity the nation deserves.

After the committee meeting, Hon. Ikwechegh spoke to the press and said, “When capital projects funding are at zero, development stops. When development stops, Nigerians suffer”.
On Thursday’s resumed hearing, where Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, was summoned to account for the missing ₦1.15 trillion, Uzoka-Anite confirmed that ₦1.15 trillion was indeed approved for capital projects. However, she revealed that disbursement protocols require multiple sign-offs, and that certain “pre-disbursement conditions” had not been met by some ministries.

She argued that while the funds exist, they cannot be released until Project documentation is complete
But committee members, armed with the Health Minister’s earlier testimony that he received only ₦38 million of his ₦286 billion allocation, demanded to know: if protocols were the issue, why were some ministries given the runaround while others weren’t?

Hon. Ikwechegh rose again and asked: “Mr. Chairman, can the minister tell this committee which specific ministry met all conditions and still did not receive funding? If none existed, why was ₦1.15 trillion approved when the government knew conditions weren’t met?”
The minister could not provide a single example. Hon. Ikwechegh then said:
If capital funds were approved, where are they?
If they were misappropriated, who is responsible?
If this is a crime, who will be held accountable?
Hon. Alex Mascot Ikwechegh reminded the committee, if funds were approved but never reached their destination, that is not poor administration. That is a crime.
On February 27th 2026, Hon. Ikwechegh was invited to Aso Rock by President Tinubu for a close door meeting.
After the meeting with the president, Hon. Ikwechegh announced his resignation from his party APGA, announcing his intention to join the APC.
Our prayers are with Hon. Alex Mascot Ikwechegh.

HURIWA has therefore appealed to the two anti-corruption agencies: EFCC and ICPC to wake up from government controlled inertia and operational slumber and investigate, arrest officials of the relevant government agencies so as to trace the exact whereabouts of the capital components of budgets.

The Rights group through the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko condemned the federal government for starving strategic ministries such as Health, Education, water Resources, Agricultural Resources, Women and Children Ministry and Humanitarian Affairs and poverty reduction agencies of vital funds for their effective and efficient services of the wellbeing and welfare of the good people of Nigeria. “Whilst Tinubu globetrots and gallivanting to every part of the World attending even conferences meant for high school students, his government starves public hospitals of the much needed funds to buy the essentials such as medication to effectively administer treatments to poor citizens.

Specifically on the fire outbreak at the Head of Service office HURIWA concluded by recalling that fire broke out at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja this Monday morning , affecting Section C of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation building. The fire was first spotted around 8:20 a.m., with thick smoke billowing from the structure, prompting staff evacuation and emergency response. Firefighters are on the scene, and authorities have cordoned off the area, diverting traffic near the Federal Court of Appeal. No casualties have been reported, and the cause of the fire is still unknown.