2021 budget: Reps blame MDAs for abysmal revenue generation to fund N13trn Appropriation

The House of Representatives on Monday underscored the need to block all leakages, expose wastages and corruption across all the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with a view to finance the N13 trillion budget for the 2021 fiscal year.

Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Finance, Hon Saidu Abdullahi who stated this during the investigative hearing of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), queried the huge expenditure on purchase of hand sanitizers worth and face-masks at the cost of N47.6 million among others totaling spending N152,487,900 spent during COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.

According to the document submitted to the Committee, NHIS in its 2020 projects and contracts executed spent N37,186,825 on the purchase of 500 packs of N95 faces mask and 500 packs of disposable face/nose masks; supply of 5,000 pieces of disposable face masks at N2,423,750; 500 bottles of hand sanitizers (500ml) at N2,423,750.

For instance, NHIS had on the 26, June 2020, spent N47.970 million on supply of hand sanitizer with customized logo and on the same day, took another delivery of disposable face/nose masks for N30,724,200 as well as another supply of disposable face/nose masks for N15.951 million.

The lawmakers also quizzed the NHIS Executive Secretary, Prof. Mohammed Sambo on the total of over N2.472 million on supply of 1,000 litres of diesel by Jotham Bright Nig. Limited in January; N2.408 million spent on 8,000 litres of Diesel to Utako Abuja office in March 2020, and N2.255 million spent on 8,000 litres of diesel to annex Wuse II, Abuja supplied by Cyclick Energy Limited; among others.

The Agency also spent N13.600 million on consultancy services on media intelligence/new media presence and surveillance; N4.867 million on television documentary; N2.228 million on various media items; N5.6 million on the production of media info kits on 22nd December 2020; N13.6 million on consultancy services for media intelligence/new media presence and surveillance on 24, February 2021.

The lawmakers also queried the sum of N49.200 million spent on vital contributors program for hosting/support of official websites and functionaries; N120.247 million on beautification of the external wall with cladding at Wuse II; N109.652 million to procure and install additional furniture, among others.

The agency also spent N37,185,825 on the supply of 1,000 disposable cover-up protective suits (High-end product) and 1,000 disposable latex hand gloves; N9.075 million for the supply of 250 pieces of decontamination spray pump.

In March 2020, the agency spent the sum of N49.200 million on a vital contributors program for hosting support of the online websites and functionalities.

On the procurement of diesel, the document also revealed that on March 3, 2020, there was a supply of 8,000 litres of diesel to head office at N2.480 million

There was also another supply of 8000 litres of diesel for its office at Wuse 2, Abuja at N2,400 million (N300 per litre as of 2020 against the N260 per litre current pump price.

The Scheme spent N49.200 million on 24, March 2020 on a vital contributors program for hosting support of the online websites and functionalities.

Similarly, on February 26, 2020, there was a supply of calculators and stationeries at N2,473,537.50.

Members of the Committee which included Hon. Nicholas Ossai and Hon. Soho queried over 40 items for which millions of naira were expended.

In his response, Sambo said the agency also provided more items under its social corporate responsibility for some social workers on the frontline.

He said: “On the huge expenditure to tunes of millions with respect to the COVID-19 items, we are National Health Insurance Scheme, we are supposed to be a strategic purchasing agency by mandate. During COVID-19, there was a plan of the ministry of health on sectoral response to Covid-19 and because we are dealing with healthcare facilities, we all know that at the beginning of COVID-19, most of the healthcare workers abandoned their duty post because they don’t have items for their protection. As part of our corporate social responsibility, we identified first-line organizations like police and so on.

“We gave them those items and we also recognized hospitals that have a huge enrollment of NHIS enrollees and we supplied them with these items.

“All the documents are available if the lawmakers need them. So this expenditure is not restrictive to NHIS. We have been directed to ensure the protection of our people.

“On electricity, we all know last year, there has been a lot of erratic supply of electricity. We have a big office in Utako and in Wuse. In our office in Wuse, we had to maintain a cooling system. We have a huge infrastructure that requires cooling. As we are improving our infrastructure now, we are talking about the level of electricity that is being consumed in the future. All the expenditure in respect to COVID, some of the MDAs wrote to PTF that they need these items, they wrote to us.

On the revenue generated and remittances, Sambo disclosed that from the addition of extra dependants enrollee in 2019 was N33.81 million; N12.88 million in 2020; N6.8 million so far generated in 2021.

On the accreditation and registration of Health Management Organizations, HMOs, Sambo said that N47.35 million was generated in 2019; N45.5 million in 2020 and N11.49 million so far in 2021.

Similarly, the agency also generated from the tenders paid by contractors N1.61 million in 2019; N620,000 in 2020 and N700,000 so far in 2021.

He said “The total revenue generation for 2019 was N32.14 million, for 2020 is N58.9 million and fr 2021 is N18.5 million.

“We have remitted to the Consolidated Revenue Fund the sum of N20.5 million which represent 25 percent for the total revenue for 2019, we have remitted N14.7 million which represents 25 percent for 2020 and for 2021, we have remitted N4.46 million and all the pieces of evidence of remittances are encapsulated in this submission.”

While ruling, the Deputy Chairman who threatened that the Committee will not hesitate to invoke its powers as guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution to compel the heads of the MDAs to appear, said: “We have just started the revenue monitoring session for the year 2021. The objective is to ensure that we shore up the revenge generation of the country.

“As I stated that the country has the capacity to fund the budget size of 13 to 15 trillion. All we need to do is to work together with the executive particularly the MDAs to ensure that we block all areas of leakages and ensure there are responsible for the consolidated revenue fund.

“We have just started and we expected to have taken more agencies today but unfortunately just the NHIS turned up.”

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