Govt Reports 20% Drop In Deaths, N566bn Recovery Of Stolen Funds

The federal government has recorded significant gains in the fight against insecurity and corruption between September and October 2025, with fatalities dropping by 20 per cent and N566.3 billion recovered from stolen public funds.

Director general of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, disclosed this yesterday in Abuja during the October edition of the Joint Security Press Briefing, held in collaboration with defence, intelligence, and anti-corruption agencies.

He said violent-related deaths fell from 240 in August to 185 in October, describing it as “a steady, positive shift in national safety indicators.”

According to him, the improvement followed stronger intelligence sharing and coordinated operations among the military, police, and other security services.

Arrests linked to violent crimes increased from 42 in September to 56 in October, while rescue operations rose by 40 per cent — from 19 to 27 victims.

Issa-Onilu said the figures showed Nigeria’s security structure “is gradually shifting from reaction to prevention.”

He noted that joint security raids in the North-West and South-East led to major seizures of illegal arms, while cross-border enforcement actions climbed from four to seven, boosted by cooperation between the Immigration Service and the DSS.

On the anti-corruption front, he revealed that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission recovered ₦566.3 billion and 1,152 forfeited properties in the past two years — including ₦46 billion and 125 assets in 2025 alone.

Of the recovered funds, ₦100 billion has been channelled into the federal government’s student loan and consumer credit programmes.

Similarly, the ICPC recovered ₦814 million in October, concluded 15 investigations, and tracked 35 public health projects across the country.

“Every kobo recovered from corruption is being made to work for the people,” Issa-Onilu said, adding that Nigerians are beginning to see the impact of recovered assets in education and credit access.

He further disclosed that NOA’s civic awareness and fact-checking campaigns reached 32 million citizens in October, up from 25 million in September.

“Information saves lives, but misinformation costs lives. Through collaboration and communication, we build trust, we build peace, and we build Nigeria,” he added.