From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The House of Representatives has resolved to probe the utilisation of take-off grants, bailout funds and intervention allocated to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and Government Owned Enterprises ( GOEs) from 2015 to date.
Consequently, the House mandated a special committee to undertake the investigation and report back to it, within four weeks.
The panel is expected to assess the compliance of the MDAs and GOEs with existing regulations and management
“and reporting of these funds, including any instances of diversion or misappropriation.”
The special committee is also expected to make recommendations “for the enhancement of regulatory frameworks, sanctions, monitoring systems and accountability measures to ensure the effective and intended use of public funds in all relevant sectors.”
This followed the adoption of a motion by the Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, calling for the probe of the utilisation of take-off grants and interventions to MDAs and GOEs since 2015 to date.
Chinda, in his lead debate, informed the House that over the years, the government has allocated take-off grants and interventions funds to existing and newly established agencies and existing ones to strengthen their operations and settle outstanding liabilities.
However, he expressed worry that there were allegations of “diversion and mismanagement of these funds, as well as the potential failure to utilise them for their intended purposes, thereby undermining the effectiveness of vital public services and projects.”
According to him, “The significant financial losses resulting from the mismanagement of these funds represent a substantial drain on public resources that could have been used for essential services and national development in-line with Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution.”
The lawmaker argued that alleged misuse of the take -off grants and other intervention funds has severely compromised national development goals and hampered progress “towards critical social and economic objectives.”
He added that, “the misappropriation of these funds has led to a demonstrable deterioration in the quality of public services delivery and compromised the security of