•places NNPCL, RMAFC, NEITI on alert
The Senate Committee on Finance, on Monday, said Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that fail to properly account for their 2024 allocations risk zero funding in next year’s budget.
It also warned heads of agencies against shunning invitations by the committee to appear before it.
The committee, which is chaired by Sen. Sani Musa (APC, Niger-East), issued the threat when it held an Investigative Hearing on the Remittance of Internally Generated Revenue, Fiscal Accountability, and the Overall State of the Country’s Financial Management System in Abuja.
Musa told the session that already, some discrepancies had already been observed in the records of a number of agencies that must be clarified ahead of the allocation of funds for the 2025 budget.
In attendance at the meeting was the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGoF), Mrs Oluwatoyin Madein, among other agency officials.
The chairman spoke further, “This performance index exercise on the various MDAs, is preparatory to the 2025 budget.
“Any agency that fails to appear before this committee upon invitation, risks zero allocation in the 2025 budget because records of how appropriations made for 2024 are expended, must be provided with facts and figures.”
The AGoF earlier submitted a summary of the IGR for this year.
The report covered Independent Revenue of N2.7 trillion; Operating Surplus from Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs) amounting to N2.3tn; and MDAs’ IGR of N344billion.
However, after going through the records, the panel said they were not detailed and the document was narrowed down only to the AGoF’s office.
Consequently, it summoned all other relevant agencies like the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC); the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI); and and the Nigerian Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for further engagements
Musa stated, “This is not about hearing from one side and another separately; we need all stakeholders present at the same time to provide clarity and consistency in their reports.
“The Senate hearing reflects growing efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s financial oversight and accountability mechanisms, with a shared commitment to enhancing transparency and building a robust fiscal policy framework.”
Senators generally frowned on the persistent delays in the release and utilisation of capital budgets, citing inefficiencies within the centralised payment system managed by the AGoF’s office.
For instance, lawmakers criticised the centralised payment policy, which requires over 700 MDAs to process payments through one channel, leading to inefficiency, delayed project completion and diminished public trust.
The case of contractors being required to pay under-the-table fees, reportedly 5% of the contract value, to expedite their payments, was also raised by senators.
The AGoF told the panel that stamp duty revenues from 2020 to 2024 were disappointingly low, totalling N30.3 million compared to the N301.49 million IGR for the period.
Senators blamed this development on the poor budget performance since taxes are only collected when payments are made.
However, Madein explained that the centralised payment system was introduced to curb inefficiencies and prevent unutilised funds from being rolled over yearly.
But, not satisfied with her explanations, the committee gave her up until Wednesday this week to provide additional information.
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