Senate President Godswill Akpabio has voiced alarm over the growing trend of government institutions and officials ignoring invitations from the legislature.
His position was delivered by Senator Abdul Ningi during the National Conference on Public Accounts and Fiscal Governance, a joint initiative of the Senate and House of Representatives Public Accounts Committees (PACs).
“The PACs possess the authority to summon any official to account for public expenditure. Any refusal to appear is an affront to democratic principles and a violation of the rule of law,” Akpabio said.
He urged the PACs to invoke their powers as provided under sections 80, 81, and 88 of the 1999 Constitution. Akpabio also highlighted a pattern of non-compliance by several Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and advised the PACs to intensify their scrutiny by conducting investigative reviews and linking spending to results.
He further recommended the use of improved technical support and advanced digital systems to improve legislative checks, especially in bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, and the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
“This conference should not end in words alone; it must provide lawmakers with actionable strategies to reinforce fiscal accountability,” he added.
At the same event, Speaker of the House of Representatives Abbas Tajudeen expressed worry about the country’s inability to properly act on audit findings.
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Represented by House Leader Julius Ihonvbere, Abbas said audit reports highlighting financial irregularities totalling over N300 billion have yet to be addressed.
He warned that failure to act on these findings sends the wrong message and urged MDAs to treat audit recommendations seriously.
“Fiscal oversight is no longer a ceremonial process, it is a strategic instrument for national growth,” Abbas noted.
He stated that the current House has introduced systems for tracking audits in real time, digitalizing audit procedures, and ensuring that agencies operate within financial rules.
He further proposed a unified national audit framework to help instill financial discipline across federal, state, and local levels of government.
“We are embedding a culture of performance-based reviews, sectoral audits, and impact assessments,” he stated.