Senate threatens sanctions as NNPCL, others ignore summon

By Haruna Salami

The Senate has resolved to take decisive action against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and several other Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for repeatedly failing to honour invitations to investigative hearings.
The decision followed a motion by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), who expressed concern over the growing refusal of government agencies to comply with the National Assembly’s constitutional oversight responsibilities.
Senator Musa reminded lawmakers that Sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) empower the National Assembly to investigate the activities of public institutions, expose corruption, inefficiency and waste, and ensure accountability in the management of public funds.
He noted that the Constitution also grants the Senate and its committees the authority to summon witnesses, demand oral or written evidence and compel the production of documents necessary for investigations.
According to him, the Senate Committee on Finance conducts periodic investigative hearings to examine the financial operations of Government-Owned Enterprises (GOEs), Ministries, Departments and Agencies, particularly their internally generated revenue, stamp duty collections, operating surplus and statutory remittances into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).
He lamented that despite repeated invitations, several agencies had either failed to appear before the committee or outright declined to honour its summons.
More troubling, he said, was that some agencies had taken the position that they were not obliged to appear before the committee or provide the requested information, despite the clear constitutional powers vested in the National Assembly.
Musa warned that such actions undermine the Senate’s oversight role, weaken fiscal accountability and reduce transparency in the management of public resources.
Among the agencies cited were the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC), Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Nigerian Commodity Exchange, Institute of Agricultural Research and Training, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), and the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON).
Others include the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), National Examinations Council (NECO), Federal Medical Centre (FMC), National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), National Research and Development Agency, Veterinary Council of Nigeria, Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT), Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).
Senator Musa accused many of the agencies of violating the Fiscal Responsibility Act and the Finance Act 2022 by failing to remit the required share of their operating surplus to the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
According to him, rather than retaining only 20 per cent of their internally generated revenue as permitted by law and remitting the remaining 80 per cent to the Federal Government, some agencies retained as much as 80 per cent of the revenue they collected.

Responding, Senate President Godswill Akpabio asked whether the committee intended to compel defaulting agencies to refund all funds unlawfully retained.

Musa replied that the Fiscal Responsibility Commission was carrying out a reconciliation of the affected agencies’ financial records and would submit its report to the Senate.

He assured lawmakers that once the reconciliation was completed, the Senate would direct the agencies to refund all outstanding amounts, noting that some had retained the funds for more than five years, dating back to 2020 and 2021.

The Senate subsequently resolved to invoke its constitutional powers against agencies that continue to disregard its invitations and frustrate legislative oversight.