Budgetary infractions: Reps beam searchlight on FMC Lagos, LUTH, NIMASA, others

By Christiana Ekpa

Chairman of the House of Representatives Public Accounts, Hon Bamidele Salam, has pledged to ensure all agencies of government comply strictly with budgetary appropriations.
Salam said the Committee was not out to witchhunt any Ministry, Department or Agency to ensure Nigerians get value for their money.
This was as the commenced the phase one of its oversight to probe spending by agencies in the Southwest.
The Committee commenced its oversight with an investigative hearing on Wednesday, 21st August which will hold till Friday, 23rd August, 2024, in Lagos State.
Rep. Salam, in his opening remarks, said the agencies must show value for any money they have collected.
He said violations of would not be tolerated and threatened appropriate sanctions according to the law against defaulters.
The committee in its hearing entertained presentations from the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Yaba and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital.
The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Yaba, Dr. Olugbenga Owoeye, was probed on various financial and regulatory infractions from the committee,
The committee during the question and answer session queried Owoeye over the recurring non-remittance of the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
He was also questioned for engaging in extra-budgetary spendings and also the inability to adhere to financial regulations thereby contravening several sections of financial regulations.
The committee also frowned at the employment principle of the hospital which failed to accommodate the federal character principle of sharing available job opportunities equitably across the geo-political zones of the country.
The committee also demanded that the hospital to account for contract sums of N422.3million as well as the spending of N50.3million on staff training.
The explanations offered by the CMD fell short of the expectations of the committee and it therefore requested for records all the paid for, completed and on-going contracts.
The CMD also stated that the 500 bed facility which was established in 1907 is in urgent need of support to enable it to deliver on its mandate.
LUTH on the other hand which was represented by its Medical Director, Prof. Lanre Adeyemo, who headed his team of staff explained that his hospital is also undergoing some challenges that have made its operations very difficult, pointing out that, of all of such, power supply has remain stubbornly outstanding.
He put the cost of powering the hospital at some point at over N181 million monthly until a federal government intervention of 300 solar panels were deployed.
He was grilled on non-remittance of IGR, discrepancy in Remita payments amounting to over N2 billion, extra-budgetary spendings without approval amounting to N150.3 billion in the period under review.
He was also questioned on the untidy work by the LUTH tender board, contravention of circular on no-payment for staff’s professional membership fees, amongst other sundry issues.
His justification of the issues under probe did not convince the committee and it therefore requested for necessary evidences on approvals, spendings and adherence to financial regulations.
Ruling on the matters, the committee resolved that, all the excuses rendered in explaining the contraventions did not hold water and cannot be tolerated.