The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Oluwaseun Mayomi Faleye, is accused of operating more than 100 bank accounts linked to a single Bank Verification Number (BVN) and granting himself “unlimited spending powers” to siphon and misappropriate funds belonging to Nigerian workers.
Multiple internal documents, bank records, and testimonies obtained by SaharaReporters allege that Faleye unilaterally conferred these powers on himself and authorised the disbursement of hundreds of billions of naira belonging exclusively to Nigerian workers, without lawful approval, board oversight, or adherence to federal financial regulations.
₦297 Billion Workers’ Funds, ₦243 Billion Allegedly Spent Without Approval
According to documents reviewed by SaharaReporters, between January 2 and October 9, 2025, the NSITF recorded total lodgements of ₦297,019,145,288.60.
The funds, insiders stressed, were derived entirely from compulsory employer contributions under the Employees’ Compensation Act (ECA), a statutory scheme designed to protect Nigerian workers injured, disabled, or killed in the course of employment.
Within the same period, records show that ₦243,203,518,621.17 was spent. Multiple senior officials alleged that a significant portion of this expenditure was carried out without the approval of the NSITF Management Board, in violation of the Act establishing the Fund and existing federal financial regulations.
“This is not government money. This is workers’ money, contributed mandatorily under the law,” one senior NSITF official said.
“Every kobo is supposed to be protected by layers of checks and balances. What we are seeing here is a complete collapse of those safeguards.”
‘No Approval Limit’: How Faleye Allegedly Gave Himself Unchecked Spending Powers
Central to the allegations is a document dated March 4, 2025, signed by Mr. Faleye and obtained by SaharaReporters.
The document is an extract from the minutes of the 46th Executive Committee (EXCO) meeting held at the NSITF Boardroom, and chaired by Faleye, detailing approval limits for financial transactions within the Fund.
According to a document obtained by SaharaReporters, the EXCO resolution set clear limits for other officials: other general managers, ₦25,000; General Manager (Finance), ₦50,000; other executive directors, ₦750,000; and the Executive Director (Finance and Investment), ₦1,000,000.
However, under the same resolution, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Faleye, and the chairman, approved no limit for his own spending authority.
According to multiple sources, this effectively gave Mr. Faleye unrestricted power to approve payments of any amount, without recourse to the Management Board or external oversight.
“He simply wrote and signed a document granting himself ‘No Approval Limit’,” a senior official disclosed. “There is absolutely no legal basis for this in the NSITF Act or in federal financial regulations.”
Another insider added, “This amounts to usurping the powers of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Under existing rules, even Managing Directors of parastatals are capped. They cannot wake up and approve unlimited spending.”
Current federal thresholds reportedly allow Managing Directors to approve up to ₦30 million for works and ₦10 million for goods and services, and even those approvals remain subject to board oversight.
“What happened here defies every known rule of public finance management,” a source said.
Several NSITF insiders described deep distress over the alleged abuses.
“This is the most reckless abuse of power I have witnessed in over 20 years in the public sector,” a senior official told SaharaReporters.
“He effectively sidelined the Board, ignored the law, and treated workers’ funds as personal cash. The emotional toll of witnessing this level of corruption is enormous. I can’t even sleep.”
Credit: SaharaReporters