The Senate Public Accounts Committee (SPAC) has threatened to issue warrants of arrest against several top government officials, including Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kaypde Egbetokun, Central Bank Governor, Yemi Cardoso, and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, for repeatedly failing to appear before the committee to respond to audit queries.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, SPAC Chairman, Ahmed Aliyu Wadada, condemned the refusal of the officials to honour multiple invitations, describing their actions as disrespectful to the National Assembly and an insult to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Nobody in Nigeria is above the law. If the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, can set aside his enormous commitments to appear before the National Assembly to present the budget, I wonder why any appointee would think they are too important to appear before the people’s parliament,” Wadada said.
Wadada warned that any further disregard of Senate invitations would result in arrest warrants and a recommendation for their dismissal by President Tinubu. The committee chairman specifically criticized FIRS Chairman, Zacch Adedeji, revealing that he had ignored more than eight invitations.
Wadada also lashed out at NNPCL and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), accusing them of failing to account for billions of naira in public funds. He alleged that the Customs Service had significant financial irregularities uncovered by the Auditor-General’s report but had refused to engage with the committee to explain the discrepancies.
Additionally, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reportedly been avoiding Senate invitations concerning ‘Ways and Means’ expenditures, raising suspicions about the apex bank’s financial activities.
Emphasizing the gravity of the situation, Wadada declared that the Senate would no longer tolerate non-compliance from any government agency.
