BY LINUS CHIBUIKE
THE Senate Committee on Public Accounts has summoned the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation over an alleged payment of N443 billion as subsidy without appropriation.
This followed an audit query in a 2016 report of the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation, which the Committee is considering.
“During the examination of Subsidy records provided by FAAC, it was observed that total subsidy paid during the year 2016 was N443,940,559,974.80.
“Oil Marketers – Arrears for 2014 paid in 2015 – payments during the year 2016 without interest is N403,321,449,046.76, Interest and Forex Differential N40,619,110,928.04 totaling N443,940,559,974.80 subsidy deducted at source by NNPC.
“This reflects continuing weaknesses in the budgeting process adopted by the Federal Government,” the query said.
The NNPC has been invited because the Accountant General of Federation, Ahmed Idris, told the Committee that the Corporation would be in a better position to explain its extra-budgetary spending.
The Senate Committee also summoned the Central Bank of Nigeria over an alleged disappearance of $9.5 million interest on the investment of Petroleum Profit Tax, royalty and foreign excess crude account.
The 2016 report of the Auditor General had also accused the apex bank of not presenting documents supporting the investment for verification.
The query said, “During the examination of transfers to Forefinger Excess PPT/Royalty and Foreign Excess Crude Accounts, it was observed that during the year 2016, amount totalling $6 million and $3.5 million were credited to the Foreign PPT/Royalty and Foreign Excess Crude Account as interest on funds investments.
“The authority for placing the funds which yielded the above interests totaling $9.5m in deposit account, the principal sums deposited, the tenor and rate of interest were not made available for audit verification.
“This observation had also been a subject of my reports since 2017 without any positive response from Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The authority for placing the funds which yielded the above interests totaling $9.5 in deposit account, the principal sums deposited, the tenor and rate of interest were not made available for audit verification.
“This observation had also been a subject of my reports since 2017 without any positive response from Central Bank of Nigeria.
“Records made available for audit further revealed that the balance in the foreign PPT/Royaltt and Foreign Excess Crude accounts as at 28th December 2016 were USD0.00 and USD, 251,826 respectively This suggest the foreign PPT/Royalthy was depleted before the year end.
“The Accountant-General has been requested to provide the authority for the funds invested, tenor of the investment, rate of interest payable, certificate for the funds invested and forward same for audit verification.”
When the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Matthew Urhoghide, asked the Accountant General of the Federation, to respond to issues raised in the Auditor-General’s Report of 2016, he said he had sent a letter to the CBN for clarification on the issues raised.
