The House of Representatives, through its Joint Committees on Public Accounts and Public Assets, has summoned the Minister of Finance, Chief Adebayo Olawale Edun, over alleged breaches of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2007.
Also summoned to appear on Monday is the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Olayemi Cardoso.
Both are expected to provide explanations regarding internal control lapses highlighted in the Auditor General for the Federation’s 2021 report.
In a letter jointly signed by the Chairmen of the two committees—Rep. Bamidele Salam (Public Accounts) and Ademorin Kuye (Public Assets), the panel requested detailed information from the finance minister and the CBN governor on the remittance of operating surpluses to the Federation Account, as required by law.
Reports from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission and the Auditor General allege that several Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), including the CBN, failed to remit or under-remitted operating surpluses over the past six years.
This non-compliance, the reports say, violates established financial regulations.
According to Rep. Bamidele Salam, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, “these violations have negatively impacted the liquidity of the federal government and constitute a hindrance to effective implementation of the budgets passed by parliament.”
The committees noted they had previously given both the Finance Ministry and the CBN ample time to reconcile their financial records and clarify their positions.
The upcoming session, they explained, is intended to serve as a final hearing to resolve outstanding issues.
Beyond concerns over remittances, the lawmakers are also scrutinizing findings in the Auditor General’s statutory report which indicates that several publicly funded projects have remained incomplete for years despite being fully paid for.
“Some of these projects in Dutse, Abeokuta and other locations were awarded between 2011 and 2016 but yet to be completed according to audit reports,” the committee stated.
