The committee members sought to know why the project, which initially appeared in the 2024 budget as "Technical Support for SMEs for Training Around Foundry Production in Three Geopolitical Zones," was advertised as "Youth Boot Camp Training."
On Wednesday, the National Assembly Joint Committee on Steel Development raised concerns about the handling of an N2 billion project earmarked for youth training in metal works by the Federal Ministry of Steel Development.
The committee raised the concern when the Minister of Steel Development, Shuaibu Audu, appeared before it to defend the ministry's allocation in the 2025 Budget.
During the session, the committee members sought to know why the project, which initially appeared in the 2024 budget as "Technical Support for SMEs for Training Around Foundry Production in Three Geopolitical Zones," was advertised as "Youth Boot Camp Training."
The lawmakers expressed worries about the change, arguing that the misrepresentation could be perceived as financial misappropriation.
Budget discrepancy raises red flags
Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Steel Development, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, asked why a youth training initiative was rebranded in the budget under technical SME support.
Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Kogi Central senator, warned that the inconsistency of the project could attract the attention of anti-corruption agencies.
"Let me note this now. This is already a public record. So, just imagine if anyone here has access to this information, which I'm sure they do, and decides to write a petition to EFCC, you and your team could be arrested for this.
"I hope you understand because what this means is that you are carrying out an exercise that is not contained in the budget and that leads to misappropriation of funds. I hope you understand because what should have happened is that there should have been a corrigendum and we are giving you a chance," she said.
The senator advised the minister to take corrective action before anti-graft agencies come after him.
"You did say that even though you budgeted N2 billion, you have only had a release of N1.6 billion, but no kobo has been spent out of it yet. So, we are just advising you so that you will not have EFCC running after your necks.
"You should actually go back to the drawing board and take it that the funds you have spent conducting the little exercise which is an advertisement with the wrong advertisement should be corrected," she said.
Demand for immediate correction
On her part, Chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee on Steel Development, Zainab Gimba, warned the permanent secretary of the ministry about the inconsistency before the meeting.
Mrs Gimba, who represents the Bama/Ngala/Kala Balge federal constituency of Borno State, said the National Assembly was not looking to trap the ministry in a mistake but rather to ensure that due process was followed.
"Maybe in the procedure there are things that are not done. We are not here in the National Assembly to wait for you to make mistakes and then we say you have done wrong. But it is in the procedure. If I want, I can keep quiet. After doing the whole thing, executing it, I can say you are wrong and then you cannot reverse it.
"But I feel that I cannot leave the wrong thing to be done. We can still correct it. That's why we insist, Honourable Minister, you correct that," she said.
Ministry pleads for procurement process to continue
In defence, Mr Audu informed the committee that the procurement process for the training programme was already at an advanced stage and had been uploaded for execution.
The minister appealed for permission to proceed with the project under its current framework.
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However, the lawmakers rejected this plea and directed the minister to return the project to the appropriate agency under the ministry for proper implementation.
They further insisted that all similar projects in the 2025 budget be correctly allocated to their respective agencies to prevent future discrepancies.
With the committee's directive, the ministry is now under pressure to revise the project description and ensure it aligns with its budget allocation.
Lawmakers are expected to continue their oversight to ensure compliance, but failure to make the necessary adjustments could result in further scrutiny from anti-corruption agencies.
The committee had earlier uncovered some fraudulent activities in the ministry with claims that there was no evidence of the implementation of several supposedly awarded and funded projects.
