Nairametrics| Already the Nigerian system of waiting several months into the new fiscal year before the budget for the year is approved is drawing criticisms from various quarters.
However, what may be even more baffling is that despite the late approval of the 2017 budget by the legislature, about 38 agencies are still yet to submit their expenditure plans for the year. This was the accusation made yesterday by the Senate during a legislative session, reports Guardian.
The affected agencies include influential and often times controversial agencies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). In effect, these organizations are running on a blank cheque, spending however they feel is necessary. The full list of culpable agencies are
- Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)
- the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
- Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE)
- National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASEI)
- Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA)
- Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC)
- National Maritime Authority (NMA)
- Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC),
- National Sugar Development Council (NSDC)
- Nigerian Postal Service (NPS)
- Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA)
- Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN)
- Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
- Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC)
- National Communications Commission (NCC)
- National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC)
- Nigeria Customs Service (NCS)
- National Broadcasting Commission (NBC)
- National Insurance Commission (NIC)
- News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
- Nigerian Copyrights Commission (NCC)
- Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC)
- Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)
- Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS)
- Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS)
- Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC)
- Radio Nigeria
- Federal Housing Authority (FHA)
- Nigerian Television Authority (NTA)
- National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC)
- Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA)
- National Business and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB)
- Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria
- National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA)
- Industrial Training Fund (ITF)
- Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC)
- Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON)
- Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority (OGZFA)
With a list this long, one wonders how many agencies actually have submitted their expenditure pattern. Particularly worrying about this development are two things. First, the refusal of these agencies to submit their expenditure plan represents a flagrant disregard for the law, specifically the Fiscal Responsibility (FRA) Act 2007. Secondly, with this financial carte blanche, the room for corruption and other financial crimes remains very wide open. For an administration harping on the efficient use of resources, this does not bode well.
