The House of Representatives Committee on Finance has threatened to order the Accountant General of the Federation to block the accounts of government agencies that have refused to render account of their revenue profile or remittances to the government.
The House spoke as the Director of Finance and Account with the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, Musa K. Jemaku, lashed out at the Office of the Accountant General for claiming that they had not paid their operating surplus for three years (2019, 2020 and 2021).
A representative of the Office of the Accountant General, whose identity could not be ascertained last night, had said the FRC did not remit its operating surplus for 2019 (N126 million), 2020 (N143 million), and 2021 (N26) million to the government coffers.
The official said the operating surplus for 2021 had not been fully calculated because the agency had not submitted its audited accounts for 2021.
Speaking at the resumed revenue monitoring of the committee yesterday, the committee’s Vice Chairman Saidu Abdullahi (APC, Niger) frowned at the refusal of some agencies to appear before the committee, despite the invitations extended to them.
Abdullahi said out of eight agencies that were invited to appear before the committee yesterday, only two (Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria and National Health Insurance Authority) honoured the invitation.
The lawmaker said while two others applied to be given another date, the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), the National Examination Council (NECO), and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) failed to either honour the invitation or communicate to them.
Jemaku, who said the agency had paid about N800 million to the government this year, also faulted the AGF’s claim that they had only paid about N602 million to government coffers.
He said there was a circular from the Office of the Minister of Finance for the implementation of the Finance Act 2020, adding that the circular automated the process of paying the 50 per cent deduction.
