By Christiana Ekpa
The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating Agricultural Subsidies, Intervention Funds, Aids and Grants Programmes has summoned the Auditor-General of the Federation, the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Agriculture over the spending of funds released for agricultural programmes between 2015 and 2025.
The summons followed what lawmakers described as unsatisfactory documentation, accountability gaps and the absence of key audit records presented at a committee hearing at the National Assembly.
Chairman of the committee, Rep. Jamo Aminu, expressed strong dissatisfaction with the inability of the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation to produce comprehensive audit reports on several agricultural subsidy and intervention schemes within the period under review.
Aminu said the investigation was part of the House’s constitutional responsibility to scrutinise public spending in the agricultural sector, especially amid worsening food insecurity, rising food prices and growing concerns over the effectiveness of past intervention programmes.
“We cannot effectively carry out this investigation without proper audit records. These funds span a decade and involve critical national programmes. Transparency and accountability are non-negotiable,” he said.
However, a Deputy Director at the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adamu, told the panel that delays in producing the audit reports were caused by the non-availability of critical documents from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
According to Adamu, the Auditor-General’s office had made repeated requests for records on agricultural subsidies, grants, aids and intervention programmes but had not received the required cooperation.
“The primary source of these documents is the Ministry of Agriculture. Without them, concluding the audit process has been difficult,” he said.
He urged the committee to widen the scope of the probe to include the Ministries of Agriculture and Finance, noting that both play central roles in the release, management and oversight of the funds.
Following the exchange, the committee directed the Auditor-General of the Federation, alongside the Ministers of Agriculture and Finance or their representatives, to appear before it on February 3, warning that failure to honour the summons would attract legislative sanctions.
Earlier, while declaring the investigative hearings open in Abuja, Aminu said the probe covers all federal government and CBN-backed agricultural intervention programmes from 2015 to September 2025, including the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme and other major schemes.
He stressed that the investigation was not a witch-hunt but aimed at tracking disbursements, utilisation, beneficiaries and outcomes to ensure value for money and protect public resources.
“The Nigerian people are watching. We will follow the money, the projects, the beneficiaries and the truth,” Aminu said.
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