Accountability: Infusing responsive parameters in revenue generating agencies to block financial leakages

Accountability is one paramount part of governance, be it in the corporate private entity or within public formations. In the public sphere, the subject on its  own is one tenet of democracy which draws heavyweight of defining characters. However, while the practicality of the tenet of accountability finds stronger ground in the working patterns of the governing architecture of private entities, it is apparent that the same have been wanting within the architectures of public governance in Nigeria.

Accountability in the Nigerian parlance of governance appears to be absent and a subject of major concern, especially regarding giving integrity of reports to public revenue and expenditures. The deficiencies of structural formations of the official architectures of governance in the Country is such which have opened the framework to the manifestations of poor  accountability culture. It is evident that while there are some instruments which are available to identify gaps in the instance of unaccountability at certain official levels within government architectures, the chunk of leakages which these instruments are weak and unable to trace or recognise, may largely overshadow the recognisable ones. The overwhelming  leakages are pulling strings which for years have weakened the system of running governance with unaccounted financial leakages. The clustering of the phenomenon has largely been the ground for the expansive wings of the tentacles of corruption which has introduced a stereotypical definition of the Country as one of the headquarters of corruption in the world.

Reports and ambiguity over cases of default in remittances from revenue generating Agencies of the Government to the coffers have been a subject pregnant with emphatic points of note. While this cuts across all levels of government in the Federation, its  stronghold at the Federal level appears more troubling, particularly with the enormity of leakages which find expression within the structures of its revenue generating Agencies. Recently, the joint efforts of the two chambers of the National Assembly to probe some Agencies whose records have revealed lacunas with suspicion of financial recklessness in the light of apparent skewing of proper accountability have raised concerns, particularly on revenue generating Agencies. The discoveries have led to Agencies falling under such category appearing on invitation by either of the Chambers or a joint committee formation to defend alleged cases of financial discrepancies.

It was last weekend disclosed that the Senate Public Accounts Committee had again summoned the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)  to appear before the Upper chamber over the alleged non-remittance of the sum of N4.07trillion to the Federation Account between 2010 and 2016. It would be recalled that the management of the NNPC had appeared before the Senate panel penultimate week to account for how the N4.07triilion was spent. The Corporation had alluded in a written response that the money was expended on oil pipelines repairs, heavily subsidised domestic fuel supplies, security and management matters. The NNPC had in the same written response to the committee claimed that the unremitted N4.07trillion was arrived at without taking cognisance of the subsidy and pipeline repairs and management associated with domestic crude oil transaction. Not satisfied with the allusion, the committee had further directed the NNPC to make provisions for detailed accounts within a week to determine whether the panel would vacate or sustain the query.

The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Mathew Urhoghide, had last Friday told members of the panel at their session that although the NNPC had submitted the required documents, its officials still needed to appear before the Committee for detailed explanation to give oral evidence and defend some of the claims in the documents submitted by the management. He was quoted: “We will give the NNPC till Wednesday or latest Thursday to appear before us for their oral defence. It was observed from the examination of NNPC report to Technical Sub-Committee of Federation Account Allocation Committee meeting held in December 2016 that a cumulative total of N4,076,548,336,749.75 remained unremitted to the Federation Account by NNPC as of 31st December 2016.”

Also under summon by the committee are the managements of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) and that of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). The basis for the summon of the later borders on the query against them from the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation (AuGF). The Senate panel had also sustained the AuGF’s query against the NNPC, the DPR and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) over an alleged unauthorised deduction of N1.5 trillion from the Federation Account. The report of the AuGF, which is currently undergoing scrutiny by the Senate panel, indicated that only the Nigeria Customs Service remitted the funds it generated to the Federation Account before necessary deductions.

It is indisputable that the system of accountability within the structures of government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the Country is so porous and underdeveloped. The traditional patterns of the working system of account is such that broadly allow for leakages which continue to weaken the workings of governance. It is evident that the porosity of public finance system wanting of virile accountability structures, remains a dysfunctional imbalance which has made efficiency and effectiveness in executing plans and achieving defined objectives difficult in the Country.

The onus lies on the Government to pay specific attention to the porosity of the public financial system. The Federal government should take the lead by setting the standard for other levels of government to follow suit. The necessity for the Presidency to work harmoniously with the National Assembly for consideration to overhauling the prevailing system with new structural patterns is sine qua non. Such modifications should bring into play automatic responses which would flash on sight, any resemblance of default and defects of financial recklessness. The need for new patterns that exposes cases of discrepancies in financial accountability is essential to guide against the expansive wings of the tentacles of financial imbalances in the accounts of public funds which have hit the Country badly. With the reality of the waves of financial strains facing the Country, it is important that efforts be directed to devising patterns to systemically block up the openings of dysfunction which have made porosity the order of resonance hindering the speed of the Government in executing productive projects with the highest level of efficiency for the desired national growth and development.