National Assembly Cannot Query State Governments on How They Spend Excess Crude Account Money - Gbajabiamila

Posted by Thandiubani on Mon 18th Dec, 2017 - tori.ng

As the controversy over how the spending of the money kept in the excess crude account continues, the leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has added his voice to the issue.

Femi Gbajabiamila

The leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has said that the excess crude account does not belong to the Federal Government but the three tiers of government as such, the National Assembly cannot query how the money is spent.

Gbajabiamila made this known in a statement made available to Channels Television on Sunday.

Governors from the 36 states of the Federation have earlier given permission to the Federal Government to utilise $1billion from Nigeria’s excess crude account to tackle Boko Haram insurgency.

This has generated criticisms from the opposing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Ekiti state governor, Ayodele Fayose, among other who has criticized the plan by the Federal Government to such huge amount to tackle Boko Haram insurgency which the government claims has already been defeated.

Gbajabiamila explained that the power of the National Assembly to appropriate funds was relevant so long as the money in question belonged to the Federal Government, not when it involved other tiers of government that chose to spend their own money.

“There is a clear misunderstanding of the powers of the National Assembly over public funds and its limitations. The National Assembly only has the power of appropriation over monies belonging to the federal government.

“The ECA does not belong to the Federal Government but to the three tiers of government. The National Assembly cannot query how the states decide to spend their money. The only institution that can query this is the state assembly.

“Where the Governors have decided to “donate” some of their funds from the ECA to fight Boko Haram, their state assemblies can kick against it that such was not appropriated by them. I do agree that due process wasn’t followed by The Governors as they should have sought approval of their states before the donation.

“It is however not for the NASS to complain on behalf of the State Assemblies. This is part of the principle of separation of powers in a constitutional democracy. The National Assembly can only discuss the portion of the federal government money spent if any,” Gbajabiamila said.

The Senate has earlier in November said that the Excess Crude Account is alien to the 1999 constitution and therefore it is an illegality calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to abolish it.

However, a federal lawmaker, Senator Rose Oko, in a motion observed that the ECA was set up in 2004 to provide savings for the country and stabilise the economy during periods of shortfalls in oil revenue maintaining that the ECA is being operated without legal backing, checks and balances thereby providing loopholes for financial recklessness.