Abdul-Rahman Abubakar & Turaki A. Hassan
10 October 2008
The Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) generated N548 billion from 1999 to date, remitted only N11 billion into the Federation Account and squandered the rest, Minister of State for Water Transportation Chief John Okechukwu Emeka said in Abuja yesterday.
He was testifying before the Senate Ad-Hoc Committee investigating the transportation sector from 1999 to date.
Documents tendered by the minister showed that since 1999, NPA collected N47 billion as ports levy and N501 billion as internally generated revenue, which brought total revenue generated since 1999 to N548 billion.
The agency however expended N453 billion without National Assembly appropriation, while only N11 billion representing 2 percent of the revenue was sent to the federation account, contrary to Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution.
sponsibility for Foreign Affairs and the residents of the Federal Capital Territory."
The minister further said "from 1999 to date, the water sector had a total appropriation of N5.8 billion but N13.3 billion was released to it owing to the additional releases of N9.4 billion under the Chinese rehabilitation program of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) in the year 2000 and other releases under the Excess Crude Oil Account in 2006."
Chairman of the committee Senator Heineken Lokpobiri (PDP, Bayelsa West) condemned the action of the ministry, which according to him expended money on some projects not captured in the budgets between 1999 and 2007.
He queried the extra budgetary expenditures saying, "Let me tell you that it is only the National Assembly that has the powers according to the constitution to approve financial appropriation for all federal ministries and parastatals." Mr. Okechukwu replied that the N9.45 billion was realized outside the budget through what he called "presidential directives."
Another member of the committee, Senator Patricia Akwashiki (ANPP, Nasarawa) said, "It has become the tradition of federal agencies to spend monies without approval of the National Assembly. This has become a permanent feature which we have to take measures to address."
In the case of the Nigeria Shippers' Council, the minister said the agency generated N13.7 billion, expended N13.5 billion and remitted only N300 million to the federation account during the eight year period. The agency, in addition to its internally generated revenue of N13.7 billion, got another N14 billion from the federation account.
Hostile questioning from the senators at one point made the minister of state very jittery. His inarticulate presentation later forced Minister of Transportation Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, who by his side, to walk out of the committee hearing room.
Meanwhile, the committee expressed dissatisfaction with the presentation made by the Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Engr. Yakubu Zubairu, and asked him to reappear before it on Monday to make a more comprehensive presentation.
It could be recalled that former Deputy National Chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and one time Chairman of NPA board, Chief Olabode George was recently arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for fraud at the NPA.
The Senate ad-hoc committee had said it would involve the EFCC in the process of investigating the maritime sector and will obtain documents on the case involving Chief Bode George. The PDP chieftain is expected to appear before the committee next week to testify on allegations that he overreached himself as chairman of NPA board.
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