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The Senate’s Committee on Public Accounts has threatened to sanction Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Nigeria Police Force, and 12 other government agencies over the refusal to address issues raised in the 2019 Audit Report.
Speaking to the press on Tuesday, the Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Wadada Aliyu (SDP Nasarawa West), criticized the repeated failure of these agencies’ leaders to respond to the audit queries.
He said that despite being given several opportunities, the agencies have consistently ignored requests to provide explanations.
Senator Wadada issued a stern warning that any agency continuing to disregard invitations to address their audit queries will have these queries upheld by the committee and subsequently reported to the Senate Plenary.
He further noted that this persistent non-compliance is hindering the progress and objectives of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
In addition to NNPCL, FIRS, and the Police, other agencies mentioned include the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, the Nigeria Mining Cadastre Office, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (formerly DPR), and the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment.
Also on the list are the FCT Internal Revenue Service, the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, and the Nigeria Communications Satellite Limited.
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Wadada said, “It is worthy to note that the Committee commenced consideration of the Audit Report in October 2023, with the intention of presenting its findings to the Plenary.
“However, some agencies have willfully failed to honor invitations to defend their written responses to the audit queries submitted to the Committee Secretariat.
“Beyond the requirement for submitting written responses to audit queries, part of the Committee’s rules of engagement requires that Accounting Officers attend the Committee’s Public Hearing to respond to questions arising from the analysis of their submissions, which in turn forms the basis for informed decisions by the Committee.”
He added, “The desire of the Public Accounts Committee to timely discharge its constitutional and legislative function is being hindered by the evasive and negative actions of some CEOs or accounting officers of the concerned MDAs.
“The Committee is very displeased with the foot-dragging attitude of agencies that are legally expected to respond to parliamentary invitations and account for their actions.
“The Committee has repeatedly extended invitations to these agencies, providing them with ample opportunities to defend their queries, but for reasons best known to them, they have chosen to disregard these invitations.
“It is on this note that we, as a Committee, have resolved that going forward, the Senate Public Accounts Committee will proceed to consider their audit queries as contained in the Auditor-General’s Annual Report. Any MDA that fails to honor invitations to respond and present its defense will have the Auditor’s position adopted by the Committee.
“This resolution will be added to our rules of engagement if MDAs do not improve their attendance in response to our invitations,” the committee chairman added.
He concluded by affirming the committee’s confidence in the commitment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to advancing Nigeria’s progress.
However, he issued a cautionary note, emphasizing that this ambitious goal can only be realized if all stakeholders fulfill their responsibilities and take the necessary actions.