The Nigerian Senate has resolved to investigate the alleged reckless spending of the N30 trillion Ways and Means by the former President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government. The Senate claims that the reckless spending of the overdraft collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under Governor Godwin Emefiele has contributed significantly to the food and security crises facing the country.
The investigation will be carried out by an ad-hoc committee, which is set to be constituted on Wednesday. The committee will probe the N30 trillion Ways and Means spending, as details of the expenditure were not made available to the National Assembly. Additionally, the investigation will cover the N10 trillion expended on the Anchor Borrowers Scheme, the $2.4 billion forex transaction out of $7 billion obligations, and other intervention programs.
The resolution followed the consideration of a report by the Senate’s joint Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Finance, National Planning, Agriculture, and Appropriation on the State of the Economy. During the plenary session, senators engaged in heated discussions, with accusations and counter-accusations regarding the approval of the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means by the 9th Senate in May 2023 and an additional N7.2 trillion passed on December 30, 2023, by the 10th Senate.
Senator Ali Ndume criticized the Senate for approving the request without receiving details from Buhari when the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means approval request was presented to the 9th Senate. However, Deputy Senate President Jibrin Barau explained that the decision was collective, with the caveat that the executive would provide details later, which did not happen.
Former Senate President Ahmad Lawan urged the Senate to focus on the present, emphasizing that the Ways and Means issue was in the past. Senate President Godswill Akpabio, however, supported the recommendation for a thorough probe into the N22.7 trillion Ways and Means approved in May 2023, stating that the food and security crises in the country are linked to the manner in which the overdraft was given, collected, and spent. The investigation will also cover other recommended probes into the Anchor Borrowers program and other intervention programs running into billions of dollars.
