Why we threatened over 100 MDAs – Senator

The Senate on Wednesday threatened to cut down 2023 budgetary allocations of over 100 Ministry, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

The indicted MDAs were threatened for repeatedly failing to appear before the Senate Public Accounts Committee to respond to queries raised in the Auditor General’s report and the allocation of Service Wide Votes.

The report has indicted some MDAs for queries like frivolous spendings, misappropriation of funds, inability to account for money spent, and payment of salaries to dead or retired staff, among others.

While for the Service Wide Votes, some MDAs had collected funds from the SWV and failed to account for it and how it was disbursed or utilised.

The threat was a sequel to a Point of Order raised by Edo South senator, Matthew Urhoghide, chairperson of the committee who complained of the MDAs nonchalant attitude.

Briefing journalists after the plenary, Mr Urhoghide said the committee decided to compile names of indicted MDAs because they have “cultivated the culture of not accounting for monies allocated to them.”

He explained how the panel sent about three letters of invitation including reminders, just to give them opportunities to defend themselves.

He said the panel also relaxed the protocol and asked that officers of competence from the MDAs appear before the committee if their heads are unavailable.

“They spend the money but don’t want to account for it. We are compiling the 2015 audit report but it is not complete because of the blatant refusal of these agencies to appear,” he said. “We are putting our reports together. There are gaps because some of the MDAs still refuse to come. It means the culture of accountability in this country doesn’t exist.”

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Even for the consideration of disbursement from service-wide votes, some of them have refused to come, he complained.

“We are looking at the line of approval, to disbursement and then to utilisation. But you can see the liturgy in their attitude towards the Senate.

“Committee is pained. Sometimes we stay till 7 p.m. It means they have something to hide. They need to come and defend what they received from service-wide votes.”

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Some of the affected MDAs include Ministries of Interior, Finance, Health Information, Foreign Affairs, Women Affairs, Communications and Special Duties.

Others are the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Police, State House, AMCON, NHIS, NEDC, INEC, Debt Management Office, NEMA, NAFDAC, National Human Rights Commission, and Ministry of Works and Housing, among others.