Audit Report: Reps Committee Summons Accountant General of the Federation 

The House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts, has summoned the Acting Accountant General of the Federation, Mr Okolieaboh Sylva over the failure of his office to lay the 2020  Audit Reports of  Ministries, Department and Agencies, MDAs, of the Federal Government  before the National Assembly in line with the Constitution of the land.

The Chairman of the Committee, Hon Busayo Oluwole Oke, handed down the order in  Abuja at the resumed hearing of the Committee on queries raised against MDAs by the office of the Auditor General of the Federation.

Oke while frowning at the development declared that this was affecting the work of the parliament at looking into the financial transactions of the MDAs which would  no longer be tolerated.

According to him, ” As the  9th Assembly is winding down, we need to redouble our efforts at looking into all the reports already laid before the House, right now we have completed work on  those from the 2017 and our reports are already in the Press after which were will lay the reports before the whole House for official consideration.

“This why we are inviting the Accountant General of the Federation to come before this Committee to tell us while he  is yet to lay the  2020 audited regards of the MDAs before the Parliament. We need to listen to him to know where the problem is coming from so that we can wade in to resolve whatever hindrance affecting the presentation.

“The Minister of Finance had openly stated that the nation’s expenditures were supposed to be its income and the ICPC also confirmed that the 2022 budget was padded by the Executive arm by several billions of Naira. Do we wind the country down ? No!, what we need to do is  to redouble our efforts at revenue generations as well  check the books of the MDAs” Hon Oke said.

The Committee Chairman also warned all the heads of the MDAs who have refused to appear before it over audit queries raised against them to retrace their steps and do the needful in their own interest as the Committee would have any other option than either to effect the arrest of the defaulters or for the Committee to relocate its sitting to the premises of such MDAS.

“We must look for the needed money to finance the 2023 budget to cater for the needs of the entire populace,” he said.

This came just as the Committee resolved to write the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr Godwin Emefiele over the N7m belonging to the Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Abeokuta  said to hanging in the bank

This followed the submission of the Chief Medical of the Centre, Prof Adewale Musa- Olomu the nation’s Apex bank has denied the institution access to the money 9ver a year now and that all efforts to retrieve it had proved abortive

Oke promised that the community would assist the Centre to recover  the money from the CBN for enhance its operations.

Hauwa Abu