Business
SERAP gives CBN seven days to ‘account for missing N100bn dirty notes, other public funds’
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), “to account for and explain the whereabouts of the over N100 billion ‘dirty and bad notes’ and ‘other large sum of cash awaiting examination’ which are kept in various branches of the CBN.”
SERAP said the allegations are documented in the latest annual report recently published by the Auditor-General of the Federation.
SERAP also urged him to “explain the whereabouts of the N7.2 billion budgeted for the construction of the CBN Dutse branch in 2010 and the N4.8 billion budgeted for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch in 2009, and to publish the names of the contractors who collected the money but failed to complete the projects.”
SERAP urged him “to explain the whereabouts of the allegedly missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion granted to the Enugu state government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016 and to fully recover and remit the public funds to the treasury.”
SERAP also urged him “to refer these grave violations of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], the CBN Act and the country’s national and international anticorruption obligations to appropriate anticorruption agencies for investigation and prosecution, as appropriate, and the recovery of the public funds.”
In the letter dated 29 June 2024 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said, “These grim allegations by the Auditor-General suggest grave violations of the public trust, the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, the CBN Act, and national and international anticorruption obligations.”
SERAP said, “These grave violations also reflect a failure of CBN accountability more generally and are directly linked to the institution’s persistent failure to comply with its Act and to uphold the principles of transparency and accountability.”
According to SERAP, “These grave violations have seriously undermined the ability of the CBN to effectively discharge its statutory functions and the public trust and confidence in the bank. The CBN ought to be committed to transparency and accountability in its operations.”
The letter read in part: “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and the CBN to comply with our request in the public interest.
“Explaining the whereabouts of the missing public funds, publishing the names of those suspected to be responsible and ensuring that they are brought to justice and the full recovery of any missing public funds would serve the public interest and end the impunity of perpetrators.
“According to the recently published 2020 audited report by the Auditor General of the Federation (AGF), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has since 2017 been keeping over N100 billion [N100,672,999,000.00] ‘dirty and bad notes’, and other large sum of cash awaiting examination in various branches of the CBN.
“The Auditor-General fears that the ‘dirty and bad notes’ initially planned to be destroyed may have been ‘be diverted and re-injected into the economy.’”
“The CBN in August 2010 also reportedly budgeted N7.2 billion [N7,286,500,476.76] for the construction of Dutse branch building. The Dutse branch was due to be completed in November 2012 but the contractors have failed to complete the project.
“The Auditor-General is concerned that the project may have been ‘awarded to incompetent contractor,’ and wants the ‘job completed without further delay.’
“The CBN in 2009 reportedly budgeted N4.8 billion [N4,812,608,028.10] for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch. The Abeokuta branch was due to be completed in 2012 but the contractors have failed to complete the project.
“There is no significant renovation work on the site, several years after the proposed completion date. The Auditor-General is concerned that the project may have been ‘awarded to incompetent contractor,’ and wants the ‘job completed without further delay.’
“The CBN also reportedly failed to account for the missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion [N1,294,453,887.83] granted to the Enugu state government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9 billion [N1,994,383,561.64] granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016.
“The Auditor-General fears the public funds may have been diverted. He wants the money fully recovered and remitted to the treasury.
“Paragraph 708 of the Financial Regulations 2009 provides that, ‘on no account should payment be made for services not yet performed or for goods not yet supplied.’
“Section 35(2) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 provides that, ‘once a mobilisation fee has been paid to any supplier or contractor, no further payment shall be made to the supplier or contractor without an interim performance certificate.
“Section 16(6) of the Public Procurement Act states that ‘all bidders shall possess the necessary professional and technical qualifications to carry out particular procurements; the financial capacity and adequate personnel to perform the obligations of the procurement contracts.’
“SERAP notes that Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution requires public institutions to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.” Section 13 of the Constitution imposes clear responsibility on the CBN to conform to, observe and apply the provisions of Chapter 2 of the constitution.
“Paragraph 3112(ii) of the Financial Regulations 2009 provides that, “Where a public officer fails to account for government revenue, such officer shall be surcharged for the full amount involved and such officer shall be handled over to either the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
“Nigeria has made legally binding commitments under the UN Convention against Corruption to ensure accountability in the management of public resources. Articles 5 and 9 of the UN Convention against Corruption also impose legal obligations on the CBN to ensure proper management of public affairs and public funds.
“Nigerians have the right to know the whereabouts of the public funds. Taking the recommended measures would advance the right of Nigerians to restitution, compensation and guarantee of non-repetition.
“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the country’s anti-corruption and human rights obligations rest on the principle that citizens should have access to information regarding their public institutions’ activities.”
The European Union (EU), says it remains Nigeria’s largest trading partner, with a total trade of almost €35 billion in 2023, accounting for about one-third of Nigeria’s foreign investment.
Ms Samuela Isopi, the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, made this known on Tuesday in Abuja, at the 9th Edition of the Nigeria-EU Business Forum 2024.
The theme for this year is “Investing in Jobs and Sustainable Future”.
According to Isopi, the 2024 edition of the forum is the first being held outside Lagos to highlight the importance of the role of the government in supporting business, private sector and private investments as drivers for inclusive and sustainable economic development.
He said, “The EU is by far Nigeria’s largest trading partner with a total trade of almost €35 billion last year, accounting for about one-third of Nigeria’s foreign trade, and a balance at more than 10 billion euros in favour of Nigeria.
“The European Union is also Nigeria’s biggest foreign investor with a stock estimated at €26 billion, representing one third of Nigeria’s FDI stock.
“In collaboration with our member states and with EUROCHAM Nigeria, the European Chamber of Commerce, we have carried out the first-ever mapping of EU companies present in Nigeria and the findings are quite extraordinary.
“More than 230 companies, from 18 EU member states are present in Nigeria with France, Germany and the Netherlands making up 60 per cent of the companies captured by the survey.”
Isopi also said that in the past, much of this investment used to go into the oil and gas sector, adding that today, the largest sector for EU companies operating in Nigeria was manufacturing, accounting for almost 20 per cent of total EU investments in Nigeria.
She said that this was followed by professional services, logistics and constructions while the extractive industries, oil and gas represented less than 10 per cent.
Isopi added that the EU companies had a turnover of four billion euros in the last fiscal year due to employment, through the creation of more than 130, 000 jobs and skill development with 6,000 Nigerians trained annually.
The Ambassador said that the EU and its member states was also a top development partner and the European Investment Bank was also increasingly active, with an important ongoing portfolio on innovation, renewable energies, and private sector development among others.
She said that if Nigeria reconsidered its position on the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), it would also open up full and immediate access to the EU market with more than 400 million consumers.
Isopi said the forum would focus on fostering concrete investments in Nigeria, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda in economic openness and investment, agriculture, digitisation, health among others.
She commended the Central Bank of Nigeria”s decision to remove foreign exchange restrictions for the import of 43 items.
In the same vein, Ms Myriam Ferran, Deputy Director- General, Directorate for International Partnerships, European Commission, said that the EU resolution was to strengthen ties across the globe especially this period of global crisis.
“The Global Gateway Initiative is a strategy by the EU to invest in infrastructure projects worldwide; it is the European offer to support sustainable connectivity around the world looking at the best opportunities for further investments.
“Global Gateway is a tool box with a toolkit where you can find what is needed. We work a lot with the government to assist in implementing and improving the business environment,” she said
Similarly, Sen. Abubakar Bagudu, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, said that the current administration was interested in encouraging investments and willing to do better in international trade.
Bagudu said that the EU concept was a model for the world and it showed that the world could do better when prosperity was shared, and commended the EU for its initiative and support to Nigeria.
“Nigeria has undertaken bold economic reforms most importantly in order to enable us to combat our reality which includes among others decades of under investment in every area of our national life.
“We are mindful that capital is out there. So what we need to do is to ensure policies that motivate capital funders with confidence to invest in our economy,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Dele Oye, President, Nigerian Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), said that the chamber was the biggest in Africa with more than 90 members.
Oye said that the chamber should therefore be contacted before any foreign direct investments.
He emphasised the need for the government to always carry the chamber along especially during international trips to negotiate better business deals.
Oye lamented the departure of some foreign companies from Nigeria and urged those still available to always dialogue with the chamber to seek ways to resolve their challenges rather than exiting the county.
The House of Representatives has resolved to probe the exploitative and predatory pricing practices against Nigerian Businesses by their foreign counterparts operating in the country.
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion by Rep. Babajimi Benson (APC-Lagos) during plenary in Abuja on Tuesday
Presenting the motion, Benson said that international business ethics and standards required businesses to operate in a fair, healthy, and efficient manner while ensuring competitive trade practices at home and abroad.
He added that some Nigerian businesses had suffered harsh and unfair competition and business relations with their foreign business counterparts.
“Prior to the commencement of the Lagos-London route by Air Peace Airlines for below N1 million, foreign airlines like British Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, sold their one-way air tickets for as high as N4 million.
”As soon as Air Peace Airlines commenced the sale of their tickets at a lower price, other airlines dropped their prices far below that of Air Peace Airlines.”
He noted that this was with the intention of frustrating Air Peace Airlines’ London route operations.
He said that Dangote Oil Refinery and Petrochemicals Company was also currently being frustrated by International Oil Companies (IOCs) in Nigeria by denying them crude and other unfair business practices thereby threaten its survival.
The lawmaker added that Nigerian businesses had also been subjected to other unfair treatment both home and abroad in an effort to disrupt their smooth operation.
He said that the objective of foreign multinationals was to ensure Nigeria remained at their mercy by patronising only their services or exporting crude oil and importing refined one.
Adopting the motion, the committee urged the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), to immediately halt the unfair business practices perpetrated by certain foreign businesses operating in Nigeria.
The House mandated the Committees on Aviation, Commerce, Petroleum (Upstream and Downstream) and Foreign Affairs to investigate the circumstances surrounding the predatory pricing practices.
The committees would also look at the unethical business competitive behaviours by foreign airlines and IOCs and report within four weeks for further legislative action.
The Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr Samuel Ogbuku, has assured that the Niger Delta Stakeholders Summit, coming up on July 10-13, 2024, will develop strategies for economic growth and development of the Niger Delta Region.
Ogbuku, who gave the assurance during an interview with journalists at NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt, said that the summit would serve as a platform to articulate a roadmap for sustainable development of the Niger Delta Region.
The NDDC Chief Executive Officer remarked that stakeholders’ engagement was one of the cardinal points in the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, stating: “The importance of stakeholders engagement is to ensure that projects and activities of government are well understood by the people.”
He emphasised the need to give the people opportunities for conversations to discuss development plans to ensure that they keyed into the renewed hope for sustainable development and support the programmes and activities of the government.
Ogbuku said further, “The plans for renewed hope have to be tailor-made. Hence, the people must participate in the process. Moreover, the democracy we are practising today is a participatory democracy where you must bring the leadership and followers together for proper understanding of policies and programmes.
“Renewed hope means touching lives. This government is out to touch lives. Bringing the people under one roof in the Niger Delta is to let them know what the renewed hope for sustainable development is all about and how beneficial it is for the region.”
Ogbuku noted that President Tinubu had charged the NDDC to complete and commission signature projects that would impact the lives of Niger Deltans. Following this directive, he said, the Commission recently inaugurated five flagship projects, covering roads, bridges and electricity, across the region.
He listed the projects as follows: “The 9km Obehie-Oke-Ikpe road in Ukwa West LGA, Abia State; the 25.7 kilometre Ogbia -Nembe Road in Bayelsa State; the 1×15MVA 33/11KV electricity injection substation in Amufi, Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area in Benin City, Edo State; the 45km double-circuit 33KV feeder line from Omotosho Power Station to Okitipupa, Ondo State and the NDDC 6km Iko-Atabrikang-Akata-Opulom-Ikot Inwang-Okoroutip-Iwochang Road and 600m Ibeno Bridge in Ibeno LGA, Akwa Ibom State.”
Speaking on the 2024 budget of the commission, Ogbuku explained that the budget was done in collaboration with major stakeholders, insisting that when approved, it would help to complete many ongoing projects spread across different communities in the region.
The Managing Director, who stressed that the Federal Government was committed to tackling the under-development in Niger Delta region, expressed joy over the passage of the 2024 budget by the Senate, as it would facilitate the speedy completion of on-going projects across the Niger Delta region.
Commenting on the Public Private Partnership, PPP, initiative embraced by the Commission, Ogbuku attributed the completion of Ogbia-Nembe Road to the gains of partnership and stated that the NDDC was in talks with Chevron for partnership in the construction of the Warri-Omadino-Escravos Road to boost oil production and other economic activities in the area.
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