Reps question finance minister, accountant general on N19 billion transfer to AfDB

The committee also identifies some transactions that violate the nation’s financial regulations and the constitution.

The House of Representatives committee investigating the status of recovered loot, on Thursday, questioned the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, and the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris, on the transfer of N19 billion to the African Development Bank (AfDB) ‘without due process’.

The committee questioned the two officers when they appeared before it in Abuja.

Oluwole Oke (PDP, Osun), a member of the committee, flagged the transfer of the money, saying it violated the nation’s financial regulation and the constitution.

Citing Section 213 of the financial regulation and sections 80,81,82,83 of the 1999 constitution, he said the transfer was done without any evidence of budgetary approval.

“From the EFCC Account, you took N19 billion. You took a whole N19 billion from the EFCC account and paid an international organisation, N19 whole billion is not remitted here. I am sure the accountant-general is familiar with this money. On what basis did you withdraw or transfer the money?

“Agreed, I am just saying that since it is not from the Consolidated Revenue Fund; the name is very clear. It is an EFCC recovery account and we are not even sure if it is a final or interim forfeiture account. But you took N19 billion out of that account. So I expect you to back that withdrawal with the law, with the act of parliament.

“Because I have the EFCC approved budgets with me. I have the 2017, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020 Appropriation Acts with me. I cannot trace that item of expenditure from the account. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have even bothered but my worry was that that money was not appropriated for and was not taken from the consolidated revenue fund and the parliament is not even aware.

“Yes you made recoveries, the fund should have been swept into the Consolidated Revenue Fund and disbursed in line with the appropriation act.

“There are a series of payments made out of this recovery account and we cross-checked the appropriation act, we can’t see where we made provisions for those withdrawals and that is our worry.”