Senate Threatens Zero Allocation to Ministries, Agencies Over Financial Discrepancies
The Senate has threatened ministries, departments, agencies, and MDAs of the federal government with zero allocation in the 2025 fiscal year if they fail to appear before it to scrutinize records of expenditures made from 2024 appropriations.
It also took a swipe at discrepancies in Nigeria’s revenue generation and expenditure tracking and called for improved synergy between the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and the legislative body.
Senators raised these and others yesterday during an investigative hearing by the Senate Committee on Finance, led by Senator Sani Musa, that focused on the remittance of internally generated revenue, fiscal accountability, and the overall state of the country’s financial management system.
Members of the committee who spoke during the session with the Accountant General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein and her team, flayed the level of discrepancies observed in the records books of some of the agencies.
In his opening remarks, Senator Musa emphasized the importance of addressing financial inconsistencies across government agencies, stating that these issues undermined transparency and accountability in governance.
The accountant-general was asked to provide a detailed explanation of the bottlenecks and propose solutions.
The Senate is expected to deliberate on whether to reform or abolish the centralized payment system, ensuring that Nigeria’s budget implementation meets the needs of its citizens and fosters development.
