‘SERAP missing N26.9bn claim against USPF misleading’ – Yaro
Public Affairs Analyst Challenges SERAP’s Missing N26.9 Billion Claim
Abubakar Yaro, a public affairs analyst and accountability advocate, has disputed the allegation made by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) that N26.9 billion is unaccounted for from the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF).
Yaro issued his statement on Wednesday in response to SERAP’s call for an investigation into Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Bosun Tijani and Yomi Arowosafe, the Secretary of the USPF, regarding the purported disappearance of the funds.
In his remarks, Yaro characterized SERAP’s narrative as selective and lacking essential context. He argued that existing records indicate the N26.9 billion claim is fundamentally misleading.
“The data from the investigation shows that the average annual allocation to the USPF during the relevant period was approximately N7.5 billion. This raises a critical question: How can an institution with an average yearly funding of N7.5 billion suddenly ‘lose’ N26.9 billion?” Yaro stated.
He further elaborated that over N13.8 billion of the contested sum pertains to operating surpluses that the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) manages before these funds are allocated to the USPF. According to Yaro, the USPF neither receives nor retains this amount.
“Therefore, we must ask SERAP why they overlooked these clarifications before taking their concerns to the media,” he concluded.
