On Thursday, the House of Representatives’ Public Accounts Committee asked the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investments to refund N75 billion in COVID-19 intervention money.
This came as the committee ordered the Ministry of Health to return the N10 billion allocated to it to create the COVID-19 vaccine.
The resolution followed a motion introduced by Bassey Akiba, a Labour Party member from Cross River State, in response to the absence of ministry officials from Thursday’s investigation hearing.
In a recent advertisement, the committee invited 59 ministries, divisions, and agencies to appear before it to begin an investigation into the suspected misappropriation of COVID-19 funding.
Originally scheduled for Wednesday, January 17, the House moved it to Thursday to sympathize with the administration and people of Oyo State following Tuesday’s explosion in the state capital, Ibadan.
Akiba presented a motion at the start of the National Assembly session to require the ministry to repay the cash appropriated to it.
The committee approved the resolution after it was seconded and directed that the ministry refund the monies to the Federal Government’s coffers.
In his previous statement, the committee’s chairman, Bamidele Salam (PDP, Osun State), noted that despite many invitations made to the ministry, its personnel did not show up.
Salam said,
“The Federal Ministry of Trade, Industries and Investments got the sum of N75bn as COVID-19 intervention funds. The Public Account Committee has sent invitations to the Ministry of Trade, Industries and Investments three times, and none of the invitations was honoured.
“The federal ministry of trade was to make their appearance yesterday (Wednesday). That was the last opportunity given to them and there was no such appearance. N75bn was appropriated to them.
“The former Permanent Secretary and the current Permanent Secretary are affected by this motion to refund the sum of N75bn to the Federal Government as COVID-19 intervention funds which as far as we are concerned, has not been expended.”
The committee also mandated the Federal Ministry of Health to return N10bn meant for the production of COVID-19 vaccines, but which was not spent, to the Federal Government.
Unlike the trade ministry, the Ministry of Health sent a representative, the Permanent Secretary, Daju Kachallom, who informed the committee that the funds were domiciled with the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.
The committee, however, directed that the money should be returned, stressing that the ministry might choose to reapply to the National Assembly for the money if it was still needed.
In a related development, the committee also directed the Director General of the Rural Electrification Agency, Salihijo Ahmed, to submit documents detailing the utilisation of the agency’s COVID-19 intervention funds.
The DG appeared before the committee at the investigative hearing and requested more time to submit relevant documents.
The committee told the agency to submit the documents on Friday before the close of work and reappear before it on Monday at 10 am.