By Sandra Michaels
The House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has expressed profound dissatisfaction over the “non-responsive” disposition of the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, describing his conduct as unbecoming of the nation’s chief accountant.
The committee’s fury followed the AGF’s repeated failure to honour invitations or provide critical documents necessary for the performance of its oversight functions and other constitutional responsibilities.
During the committee’s session, the Chairman, Hon. Bamidele Salam, alongside several members, lamented that despite numerous correspondences forwarded to the Office of the Accountant-General in recent months, the AGF has consistently failed to appear before the panel or provide the requested financial records.
The Bamidele Salam-led committee characterized the AGF’s attitude as disappointing, emphasizing that the Office of the Accountant-General is expected to maintain a cooperative relationship with the legislature to ensure the prudent management and accountability of public funds.
“It is unacceptable for an office that is the heartbeat of our national financial management to treat the parliament with such disregard,” the committee noted.
Summoning of MDAs
In a related development, the committee has issued a final warning and fresh summons to six Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) whose accounting officers have repeatedly shunned previous invitations.
The affected agencies include:
Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet)
Federal Cooperative College, Ibadan
Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN)
Federal Ministry of Education
Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology
Federal Ministry of Police Affairs
The Chairman warned that the committee would no longer tolerate such disrespect for the institution of the National Assembly. He hinted that the panel would not hesitate to invoke all available constitutional and parliamentary measures to compel compliance from any public official or institution that continues to ignore its lawful invitations.
The AGF and the heads of the affected MDAs are expected to appear before the committee on Monday.
