Afashima noted that JONAPWD is legally recognised as the umbrella body of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs); hence, the association submitted the names as requested.
The Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD) in Benue State has accused the Principal Special Assistant to the State Governor on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Mr Anshe Bemshima, and the Special Adviser to the Governor on Women Affairs and Coordinator of the Renewed Hope Initiative, Mrs Scholastica Ben-Sor, of diversion, misappropriation, and theft of a ₦50 million Presidential Empowerment Fund.
The fund is meant for People with Disabilities (PWDs) and vulnerable citizens in the state.
Speaking with SaharaReporters, the Secretary General of JONAPWD in Benue State, Moses Afashima, said that earlier this year (2025), Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, visited the state and pledged N50 million for PWDs in the state.
“Later, we discovered that the money had been released. On December 2, 2025, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Women Affairs, Mrs Scholastica Ben-Sor, who is also the Coordinator of Renewed Hope Initiative, according to what the Principal Special Assistant to the Governor on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Mr Anshe Bemshima, requested 50 names from our association,” Afashima said.
According to Afashima, Bemshima told him that out of the 50 names, “The association should bring 30 persons, the political group, APC Disability Support Forum should bring 10 names, while he (Bamshima) will bring 10 names.”
Afashima noted that JONAPWD is legally recognised as the umbrella body of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs); hence, the association submitted the names as requested.
“On Wednesday, December 3, 2025, at the Government House, where N200,000 each was supposed to share to 250 Persons with Disabilities according to the First Lady’s directive, only 42 persons that we can confirm got the money,” he said.
Afashima noted that despite the fact that fewer than 50 people got the money, N50,000 was deducted from each of the 42 people who got the money.
“Scholastica claimed that it was for medical outreach. The main event, which was the International Day of Persons with Disabilities Disability Celebration/Disability Summit, took place at Benue Hotel, while the sharing of the money took place at the Government House.
“When we got to the Government House, we saw on the banner of the outreach, written, free medical outreach. We asked why N50,000 was deducted from each beneficiary for medical outreach, while the banner is showing free medical outreach; what was the money deducted for?
“As we speak, we do not know where the remaining N40 million meant for the remaining 200 people is, and we do not know where the N50,000 deducted from the 42 persons who received the money went. We do not know where the N200,000 meant for the remaining eight people who Bemshima requested went to.”
Afashima told SaharaReporters that they reached out to Bemshima because, “he has been looting our palliatives given to us by the governor, this is not the first time.”
He said that on December 3, when Governor Hyacinth Alia met with Persons with Disabilities, they complained to him and told him that the PA “is no longer serving the purpose to which he was appointed, that he is leading the people to loot the funds meant for us.
According to him, “The governor was angry and left the venue. Till today, we have not heard from the government, and when people contacted Bemshima, he refused to say anything, claiming that the government has not permitted him to speak.
“That is why we petitioned the EFCC, and our cry is that the governor should prevail on his appointees to release the N40 million, which was not given to our members, and give the money to our members. There can be nothing for us without us.”
He said, “The worst thing is that those members who came to celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities were not allowed access to the hall and were not given food or water.”
JONAPWD in a petition dated December 8, 2025, and addressed to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Makurdi Zonal Directorate, and copied to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Department of State Services (DSS), said the petition was pursuant to Section 6 of the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, as well as Sections 27 and 28 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.
According to Afashima, the fund was meant to recapitalise small businesses, be disbursed without deductions, and be distributed transparently and free from political interference.
He said that while other states complied with the First Lady’s directive, the Benue State government officials chose to divert their own, thereby depriving hundreds of intended beneficiaries of the presidential support.
JONAPWD further accused the government officials of criminally converting the balance of the funds, contrary to the stated purpose of the grant.
Afashima told SaharaReporters that several witnesses are willing to testify before the EFCC, including Hon. Angwer George, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Sign Language, who he said supervised the disbursement of the funds and witnessed the alleged diversion, and Mr Peter Iorkighir, a beneficiary present at the disbursement event, who corroborated claims that only a handful of persons received full payment.
When contacted, Peter Iorkighir, who Afashima identified as one of the witnesses and one of the people who received the money, said that he was informed that only four slots were given to persons affected by leprosy, out of whom he was one of them.
“I was in Markurdi on December 2 and 3, for the International Day of Persons with Disabilities celebration, when the cluster head of Persons affected by Leprosy called me and said that four slots were given to us for the N50 million the First Lady gave,” Peter told SaharaReporters.
He further said, “When we were in Government House on December 3, I discovered that the only names they collected from the entire Persons with Disabilities in Benue State were 50 people.
“And among the 50 people, those of us who received the money that day were 42. And each of us received N150,000.
“Meanwhile, the money was meant to be given to 250 Persons with Disabilities in each state at N200,000 per person,” he said, adding that the First Lady gave N50 million to each state of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“We want to know why they didn’t give the money to 250 People, and even the 50 people who said they wanted to give the money, they ended up giving to only 42, and then ended up giving us N150,000. What happened to the remaining money?”
SaharaReporters also contacted another beneficiary, Joseph Chia, who also confirmed that the government officials told the beneficiaries that they would not receive the complete amount of money they were supposed to be given.
“We were told that we will not receive exactly the amount. That was the language,” Chia told SaharaReporters.
“If I am not mistaken, part of the money went into medical outreach, which the flier was showing as ‘Free medical outreach’. Banner showed free. So free means no charge.”
SaharaReporters further contacted some of the beneficiaries, including those who attended the disbursement event but did not receive any money.
One of them is Tersoo Pevkya Matthew, who said he attended the disbursement event, but when he got to the Government House, he found out thatthe names of those who would get the money had been written and those whose names were not in the list were not allowed access to the disbursement hall.
“When I investigated, I found out that for the N50 million, the Principal Special Assistant to the State Governor on Special Needs and Equal Opportunities, Mr Anshe Bemshima, was the one in charge,” Matthew said.
“I found out that he selected only 50 names, 30 names from JONAPWD, 10 names for himself and 10 names for the APC support group.
“I asked for the remaining 200 names, but the PA (Bemshima) told me it was not the time to answer my question. I watched as they shared the money to only 32 people, and the rest did not get the money.”
Matthew said that when they insisted on getting explanations on what happened to the remaining money, “they had nothing to tell us except lies.
“They told us that the first 10 people received N200,000, others received N150,000 instead of N200,000 each beneficiary was supposed to get.
“They deducted N50,000 from those who received the money, and when we asked, they said the N50,000 was deducted for medical outreach. Meanwhile, we saw on the banner that the medical outreach is free.”
Similarly, a member of the Nigerian Association of the Blind, Mr Victor, told SaharaReporters that he did not receive the funds, noting that his cluster was given only four slots, of which he was not among the selected persons.
According to him, there are six clusters under the umbrella of the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities in Benue State, including the Blind cluster, the Physical Disability cluster, the Albinism cluster, the Hearing Impaired cluster, the Leprosy cluster, and the Spinal Cord Injury Survivor cluster.
“Each cluster was given only four slots. My cluster head said he did not submit my name for the money; hence, I did not go for the disbursement of the money,” Victor told SaharaReporters.
He, however, said that after the disbursement, “One of the members of JONAPWD sent a message on our WhatsApp group congratulating 250 people for receiving N200,000.”
However, he said one of the beneficiaries he identified as Rev. Jacob responded to the message and said he was given N150,000, not N200,000.
“That prompted me to call some other persons who benefited, and they confirmed that it was N150,000 that they received. That made me start to investigate the issue.”
Victor noted that three months before the disbursement, one of his friends, who is the State Chairman of the National Association of the Blind, Delta State branch, had told him about the revitalisation empowerment program from the wife of the President.
He further told SaharaReporters, “It was also announced on radio and television that 250 persons with disabilities were to be empowered in each state by the wife of the president to revamp and revitalise their businesses, and for those who have no business, they should be able to start something small.
“But in Benue state, the people who received that empowerment funds were not up to the number announced by the president’s wife. And about 30 persons from JONAPWD, who we know that they received the money, did not receive up to N200,000.
“N50,000 was deducted from each of the recipients, which they (government officials) claimed was for medical outreach. Apart from the deduction, why happened to the rest of the people who were supposed to receive the empowerment fund is what I don’t know.”
In their petition, JONAPWD referenced an alleged prior investigation involving the governor’s aide, Bemshima, in 2024 over the diversion of palliatives meant for PWDs, describing it as evidence of a pattern of misconduct.
They urged the EFCC to arrest and investigate the named officials and any others found complicit, recover the allegedly misappropriated funds, and ensure full payment of N200,000 to each of the 250 intended beneficiaries.
They also called for prosecution under relevant laws, stressed that the grant was non-political, and urged the commission to take urgent action to deter future exploitation of vulnerable communities in Benue State.
“The conduct of the accused persons constitutes a serious economic crime, a betrayal of public trust, and an inhumane exploitation of vulnerable citizens,” they stated.