Reps summon Taiwo Oyedele, AGF over N75bn UBEC debt

The House of Representatives has summoned the Minister of Finance, Taiwo Oyedele, and the Accountant-General of the Federation, AGF,  Shamseldeen Babatunde Ogunjimi, over N75 billion reportedly borrowed from the Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC.

The two officials are expected to appear before the House Public Accounts Committee on Thursday, October 22, to explain how the money will be refunded.

The decision was taken at a hearing in Abuja on Friday after lawmakers questioned the withdrawal of funds belonging to government agencies to meet other obligations without clear repayment plans.

The committee, chaired by its Deputy Chairman, Jeremiah Umaru, said public funds meant for one agency should not be diverted to another purpose without proper conditions.

Umaru said the committee wanted a firm commitment on when the money would be repaid, rather than just explanations from representatives.

“For each borrowing, there should be terms and conditions attached. We want to know what your plan is. 

“You borrowed money for certain reasons, but you should be willing to return it within a specific period, even without interest, since it is government-to-government.

“The main issue we are looking at is N75bn. We need the Accountant-General to appear in person, and we want the Honourable Minister to appear in person too so that we can get a timeline.

“We want to agree on when this money will be paid so that we can close this matter once and for all,” the committee said.