How MDAs stole N3.3trn in 2014 - Auditor-General

The Federal Government has uncovered over N3.3 trillion fraud allegedly perpetrated by the various Ministries, Departments, Agencies (MDAs) and foreign missions in the 2014 fiscal year.
The Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF) Mr Samuel Ukura, who presented a copy of the re¬port to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Alh Salisu Maikasuwa on Monday for onward presentation to both chambers, gave highlights of how monies were diverted or spent by the MDAs during the period under review.
According to the document, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation did not remit N3, 234577,666,791.35 to the Federation Account Allocation Committee in 2014.
Apart from this, the report stated that $235,685,861 being gas sales proceeds accruable to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, was also not paid to the federation account, but rather, transferred to some undisclosed Escrow Accounts.
The report alleged that relevant documents were not made available to the office of the Auditor-General for verification.
It added that N36, 432,423,968.73 was released to the Office of the National Security Adviser for the rehabilitation and construction of dams instead of the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.
The report added that N2,894,531,250 was spent for the procurement of hand sanitisers for schools and critical public places, to tackle the Ebola epidemic.

 It further added, “The sum of N31,324,952,239.87 was payment of subsidy on fertilizer and youth employment in agricultural programmes.
“The sum of N2, 395,851,978 was payment for Group Life Assurance Premium for Armed Forces budget in 2013, but not backed. The sum of N500 million was made as payment for agricultural programmes.
“These were variances with the purpose of the fund. No evidence of these lines of expenditure in the 2014 Appropriation Act.”
The report added that the management of the National Assembly, headed by the clerk, made payments of N9, 514,568,222.62 without raising payment vouchers.
It also noted that the management of the National Assembly violated the nation’s financial regulation.
Within the same period under review, the report noted that personal advances were granted to 112 staff of the National Assembly from recurrent votes and 50 members of staff from general service votes from July to December, 2014 for various purposes, totalling N1,162,009,305.
In the audit report, the AGF disclosed how the Embassy of Nigeria in Washington DC, United States of America, realised Internally-Generated Revenue of $3,705,428 between 2012 and March 2015, but expended the whole amount on sundry expenses.
The report added that a 22-storey building housing the Nigerian Consulate-General, the National Boundary Commission of Nigeria and the National Intelligence Agency is fast deteriorating and grossly underutilised yet huge sums in dollars were being expended to maintain it.
It recommended its immediate rehabilitation while the under-utilised space be put up for rent to earn revenue for Nigeria.
The report added that the leadership of the Nigerian Prisons Service deducted Pay As You Earn tax of N2,036,758,176.75 but failed to remit the money to the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
The report noted that there was no evidence of remittance and nothing was produced for audit confirmation.
Another startling revelation in the report is the purchase of a vessel in Singapore on behalf of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources for the purpose of a training programme of the Petroleum Training Institute in Delta State.
It noted that part of the payment, which was not stated, was made while the vessel had been abandoned for the past five years with the vessel rapidly deteriorating in value.
“The cost of the purchase and how much was paid before the vessel was abandoned could not be ascertained, due to the fact that the contract was awarded without involvement of the Nigerian Mission in Singapore,” it added.
The report also stated that about $1.6 million out of the contract sum of $2.3 million meant to build a school by Nigeria in Haiti at an area not affected by the earthquake in 2010 had been paid without the project being executed up till now.
The report said: “As of the time of inspection, there was no evidence of Memorandum of Understanding between Nigeria and Haiti Government for the construction of the school. More so, the location of the school was not affected by earthquake in 2010. Therefore, the purpose for which the money was given cannot be achieved.”
The report also uncovered an alleged N3.8 billion in the Ecological Fund which was disbursed to Lagos, Ogun, Kebbi, Sokoto as grants for undisclosed reasons and changed to capital votes in 2010.
According to the Report, “Despite repeated demands for payment vouchers they were not provided. We could not verify the nature of grants,” the report added.