Prominent human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) to investigate the alleged diversion of the $3.4 billion loan Nigeria received from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement released on behalf of the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond (ASCAB) on Sunday, Falana urged the IMF Board to probe its own management for allegedly failing to ensure that the funds were used for their intended purposes.

“It is pertinent to recall that in the wake of the COVID-19 in 2020, Nigeria requested emergency assistance of about $3.4 billion… to help alleviate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the sharp fall in oil prices,” the statement read.

Falana also asked the IMF to halt the collection of scheduled charges—amounting to SDR 125.99 million (approximately N275.28 billion)—pending the outcome of an investigation.

Though the IMF recently confirmed that Nigeria had repaid the principal loan, a 2020 audit report by the Office of the Auditor-General flagged serious irregularities.

According to the report, $2.4 billion was transferred to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and later moved to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) for short-term investments.

“These transactions… were not supported by documentation or approvals from the Federal Government or the CBN’s Investment Committee,” the report stated.

The audit also noted that the funds were reclassified as part of the CBN’s external reserves, allowing them to accrue interest—contrary to their emergency use mandate.

Furthermore, the report revealed that in August 2020, $700 million was monetised at an inflated exchange rate, with a 2% commission deducted.

“At the end of 2020, an unmonetised balance of $2.7 billion—equivalent to approximately N1.02 trillion—remained unaccounted for,” the Auditor-General found.

Falana stressed that those involved in the fund’s mismanagement must be held accountable: “The Auditor-General recommends that anyone suspected to be involved should be sanctioned and handed over to the EFCC and ICPC for investigation and prosecution.”

He added that all interest earned must be remitted to the Federal Government, and evidence of such remittance forwarded to the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee.