AUDIT QUERY: Reps Ctte Probing NESREA Over N1.25bn Extra Budget Spending Summons Chairmen NASS Environment Committees

Abuja: By Segun AJAYI

Published, Tuesday, July 12, 2022

NESREA Boss  Claims Budget Was Approved By Environment Committees of NASS

Committee kicks, Summons Colleagues, Writes SGF, CNA

THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE (PAC) has has kicked against the extra budgetary spending by National Environmental Standard and Regulations Agency (NESREA) 2019 amounted to N1.25bn without following due process of appropriation, describing it as illegal and total violation of the law of the land.

The Committee being Chaired by Hon Busayo Oluwole Oke has therefore resolved to probe the extra budget spending to unravel the mystery behind the illegal act.

Consequently, the Committee has therefore  summoned the Chairmen of the Senate and House Committee on Environment to appear before it to explain their roles in the spending, following allegations made by the Chief Executive Officer  of the Agency, Professor Aliyu Jauro that the budget was approved by the Committees.

Responding to query from the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation before the Committee, the NESREA Boss claimed that the Agency had the mandate of the National Assembly to spend its Internally Generated Revenue IGR, insisting that the budget was approved by the lawmakers.

However, the Chairman of the Committee, Hon Oke said  that there was no evidence that the budget of the agency was ever tabled before the House at plenary neither was it debated nor approved by the House.

Oke directed the Clerk of the Committee to write letters to the chairmen of the Committees on Environment of both chambers of the National Assembly to invite them to come and  explain their roles in the consideration and passage of NESREA's 2019 budget without the budget being debated at plenary, as the laid down procedure for the budget passage of  the Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the federal government (MDAs).

Oke said that both chairmen be invited for questioning as there were no evidence of the Agency's 2019 appropriation having been considered and passed at plenary or that it went through the mandatory legislative process of first, second and third reading.

He pointed out that if it was established that both the House of Representatives Chairman on Environment and his Senate counterpart considered and approved the N2.5 billion budget for the agency and authorized it to spend its Internally Generated Revenue in the budget, it would  amount to Acts of illegality and ursurpation of the powers of the President as only he is authorized to assent to the budget for expenditure to commence.

According to him, "From details available in the 2019 submitted audited report of the Agency, there was no evidence of its budget having passed through the rungs of required legislative process of submission of its estimates from the Presidency; no evidence of its receipt at the legislature or that it was debated on at plenary by the House before being committed to relevant committees for the necessary checks before it was compiled along with those of other MDAs and sent to Mr President for assent to become an Act.

"If this is so, then it amounts to the two chairmen of the NASS Environment Committees just sitting back in the corners of their offices and unilaterally approving the NESREA budget and ordering commencement of expenditure without Mr President's assent, amounting to an acts of illegality and gross insubordination.

Hon  Oke also directed that letters be written to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha and the Clerk to the National Assembly, Ojo Olatunde for proof that there was correspondences between the executive and the legislature on the movement of the Agency's budget for the year under review.

He stressed the need to sanitise the budget process and enthrone accountability in such an important document as the Appropriation Bill.

Oke however warned heads of MDAs invited to respond to queries over their yearly financial statements but refused to honour such invitations to desist from dishonouring the parliament.

He threatened to report such MDAs to the president on the development, telling him of that his choices as chief executives were not up and doing in their functions and were in fact undermining the president's trust in their capabilities to perform and would not shy away from recommending their replacements.