Mr. Anthony Sani, former Secretary General of the Arewa Consultative Forum, criticized the House of Representatives for postponing a motion to investigate N15 trillion in unaccounted revenue held by the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC). The motion was introduced by Mansur Soro, a federal lawmaker from Bauchi State, who argued that FAAC’s new revenue savings policy contravenes constitutional mandates for distributing funds among federal, state, and local governments. Soro pointed out that the FAAC had saved this amount over 20 months without proper legal guidelines or transparency, raising concerns about the impact on governance and economic conditions for citizens.
Sani expressed disbelief that FAAC would retain such a large sum when government entities face economic challenges. Rights lawyer Abdul Mahmud echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the lack of transparency in FAAC’s actions and the potential consequences for state and local government budgets. Good governance advocate Joe Key-Odumakin called for a strong opposition in the National Assembly to address these issues, noting that the withheld funds could harm public trust and exacerbate financial difficulties for government bodies. Soro reiterated that the figure of N15 trillion is likely conservative, suggesting that actual savings may exceed N20 trillion.
