Reps probe N2.9trn in Treasury Single Account

THE House of Represen­tatives has inaugurated a 10-man Ad-hoc Commit­tee to investigate the N2.9 trillion in the Treasury Single Account (TSA). The committee was also mandated to ascertain the actual amount accrued so far, government’s plans on spending and the various agencies from which such funds were obtained. To this end, the com­mittee will liaise with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other relevant agencies to investigate how the account has been managed.

The resolution was passed following the adoption of a motion on the ‘need to ascertain the proceeds of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) to enhance transparency accountability and good governance,’ sponsored by Adamu Kamale.

In his lead debate, Ka­male, who applauded the successful imple­mentation of the pilot TSA scheme which was launched in 2012, noted that 217 ministries, de­partments and agencies (MDA) were used as case study.

He added that the present administration, however, demonstrated the political will to fully implement the TSA effec­tive September 15, 2015, leading to a directive to banks to implement the technology platform that would help accommodate all MDAs in the scheme.

“We are aware of the disclosure by the Minis­ter of Finance, Kemi Ad­eosun, on March 3, 2016, that, from the execution of the TSA, a balance of N2.9 trillion has been accumu­lated from the MDAs.

“It is, however, wor­risome that despite the laudable commitment of the current administra­tion to combat corrupt practices, eliminate waste in public finance and en­sure adequate fund flow that will be channeled to critical sectors of the economy to facilitate de­velopment, some estab­lishments are still left out of the TSA platform.

“It is equally of concern that while Section 80 (1) of the constitution regard­ing maintenance of Fed­eration Account provides a broad legal framework, it does not address the operational details, and concerns have been raised by the Revenue Mobilisa­tion, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMFAC) about the possible sharing of TSA funds among the tiers of government.

“While there is no clear operational details as re­gards the management of the funds accumulated in the TSA, the need for its urgent utilisation to discharge government commitments for devel­opment and good gover­nance may be delayed to assess the anticipated im­pact of the policy.

“It is regrettable that the objectives of TSA to insti­tutionalize transparency, accountability and fiscal discipline in public expen­diture may be negated if the plan for its utilisation is not made public for purposes of accountability and transparency.

Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, Edward Pwajok and Solomon Anawhinawhi echoed Kamale’s position­which include concern over implementation of the policy.