The House of Representatives Committee on Finance has asked the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission(NIPC), to explain why it spent 20 per cent of its revenue without authorisation.Rep. James Faleke, Chairman of the committee stated this when the NIPC and Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) appeared before it in Abuja on Thursday, on probe of revenue generation by government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).“The FRC needs a report of your sessions with NIPC and why it spent 20 per cent of its IGR, and there has not been any query from your agency,” Faleke said.“A fully funded agency is supposed to remit their revenue 100 per cent. So you spent money illegally. On what authority did you approve the usage of that money,” Faleke said.Faleke also queried the NIPC for recording an expenditure of N3.15 billion, in spite of generating a revenue of N2.89 billion in the first quarter of 2024.
The Director, Finance and Administration, of the commission, Mr Akwada James, told the committee that the amount was projected expenditure for the year.
“The reason is because our income does not come at a time. So we have committed spending in the budget for the year,” he said.
Faleke, however, wondered how the agency could budget for what it had not done yet.
“The revenue collection for the first quarter of 2024 is N2.89 bilion , and your expenditure for that same period is N3.15 billion.
“If you are giving us revenue for a quarter, the expenditure for that quarter should be stated, not the whole thing.
How can you give me expenditures for the whole year?”he said.
The Chairman of the FRC, Mr Victor Mururako, represented by Mrs Victoria Adizou-Angakuru, said they had not received NIPC’s audited financial statements since 2019.
Faleke directed the Managing Director of the NIPC to appear before the committee on June 5, with their comprehensive records.(NAN)
