Committee on Public Accounts on Tuesday, expressed disappointment over the manner its invitations to Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government were usually treated.
Chairman of the Committee, Senator Matthew Urhoghide, in his address at the investigative hearing, explained how some agencies of government have disdain for honouring invitations.
Out of 14 agencies that were invited for investigative hearing, which was confirmed by the Public Accounts Committee, “the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Federal Inland Revenue (FIRS), National Bureau of Statistics (DMO), and Head of the Civil Service of the Federal did not honour the invitation.”
Irked by the development, Senator Uroghide said: “We are going to look into all our extant rules, the Public Procurement Act, Fiscal Responsibility Act, Financial Regulations and all Public Spending.
“I want you to be as serious as possible and for those agencies talking about representation, it is not going to be allowed. So, you go back and tell your principal, we are going to subordinate you to oath and anything you tell us.
“Tomorrow, if any body takes us to court, we are going to have proper justification and evidence to say yes, you came to the national assembly and this is what you said.
“So, if you are going to answer these queries through proxies, it is unacceptable. You must tell your heads who are here that there are consequences that have been earmarked in the financial regulations, if you were to spend money without authorisation, the regulation says you should be removed from office.
“That is what we are going to tell the President of this country, the executive must comply that you are removed from office.
“No body is going to shave your hair while you are out there. Therefore, if you send somebody to us it is unacceptable, even if you do not appear, it only means that you have accepted the guilt and we are right about you.”
He further insisted that heads of the affected agencies should appear personally, saying that the committee would not attend to their representatives.
