Senators Deny Role In ₦1.3 Billion PFIPC Budget Scandal

Lawmakers have cautioned against blaming the Senate and its President, Godswill Akpabio, over the controversial ₦1.3 billion allocation to the Presidential Fiscal and Infrastructure Projects Council (PFIPC).

They insisted that the legislature neither created the agency nor originated its budget.

The defence came amid public outrage over the discovery of the allocation for an agency the Presidency had repeatedly described as non-existent.

According to Punch, the allocation was approved without the alleged agency’s Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, or any official of the council appearing before the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service to defend the budget.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service, Senator Cyril Fasuyi, speaking with Punch, distanced his committee from the controversial agency.

“I am not sure I have heard of that PFIPC before. Every MDA falls within the oversight of its relevant Senate committee. But I honestly don’t know the committee in charge of this PFIPC. It is not under the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service where I serve as chairman,” Fasuyi said.

He added that his committee oversees training centres, the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation, the Civil Service Commission, the National Assembly Service Commission, the Salaries and Wages Commission and PENCOM.

‘Don’t Drag Akpabio Into Controversy’

A chairman of another Senate committee, who spoke on condition of anonymity, warned against dragging Akpabio and lawmakers into the matter without evidence.

“Akpabio has nothing to do with the creation of any agency, especially when it has something to do with ‘presidential council or anything’ as the name implies,” the senator said.

He added, “Many went out of their way to ask why the Senate approved its budget. This is to tell you we are following all the drama.”

The senator said the assumption that the PFIPC was under the Committee on Establishment and Public Service was wrong.

“What Senator Fasuyi told you is quite correct. This so-called agency is not under the Committee of Establishment and Public Service,” he said.

Budget Originates From Executive – Senator

A principal officer of the Senate, who also spoke anonymously, described the development as unfortunate but insisted that budget proposals originate from the Executive.

“For anybody to fully understand how the Senate works, he needs to look at the process. First, I am a legislator, not the executive,” he said.

He explained that agencies in Nigeria are created either by legislative or executive action.

“By looking at this particular agency’s name, Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, you can easily tell that it is not the creation of the legislature,” he stated.

According to him, the Budget Office invites ministries, departments and agencies to submit proposals, which are reviewed by the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the Budget Office and the Ministry of Finance before transmission to the National Assembly.

The lawmaker said the National Assembly only considers estimates forwarded by the Executive and relies on the Executive’s vetting process.

“It is not the job of the Senate or the National Assembly to determine what the budget should be for a particular year,” he said.

“Is it Akpabio that earmarked the PFIPC budget or included it in the budget? Are we the ones who gave the agency CBN-approved accounts? Honestly, I am not bothered about the Executive as far as this is concerned. But it is wrong to keep harassing and dragging the legislature into what it knows nothing about,” he added.

Responding to why the Senate did not further scrutinise the agency, the senator said lawmakers examine figures in appropriation bills, not the legality of agencies already captured in the budget.

“There is little or nothing we can do once a budget finds its way into an appropriation bill for a particular year. As lawmakers, we vet only budgets, not the creation of MDAs. That is not our job,” he said.

Senate May Address Matter

The lawmaker compared the process to ministerial screening, saying security agencies, not the Senate, are responsible for verifying nominees’ documents.

“Our job is to work on verified documents transmitted to us and then proceed to budget defence as long as the MDAs are captured in the appropriation,” he said.

He added that the Senate could not anticipate irregularities once the President had presented an appropriation bill.

“The role of the Senate is appropriation, oversight and lawmaking,” he said.

The latest defence by lawmakers comes as the Senate is expected to address the controversy surrounding the ₦1.3 Billion PFIPC allocation when plenary resumes on Tuesday.