He warned that the Senate would escalate the matter directly to the President if the affected officials do not change course.
By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – The Senate Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has issued a stern warning to the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and the heads of several key government agencies, including the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), over their repeated refusal to appear before the committee.
At a press conference on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at the National Assembly, chairman of the committee, Sen. Aliyu Wadada Ahmed, condemned the persistent disregard for Senate invitations and threatened severe consequences, including arrest warrants and recommendations for their removal from office.
He said, “If the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, can take time out of his busy schedule to present the national budget before the National Assembly, I wonder how any appointee would feel they are above the law or too busy to honour our summons.”
The senator accused the FIRS Chairman, Zacch Adedeji, of ignoring eight invitations from the committee, as well as failing to respond to official communications.
“From the inception of this committee to date, more than eight invitations have been extended to the chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, who has intentionally refused to appear before this committee. He has also not responded to any of our communications,” Wadada stated.
“From this moment, the line is drawn. If he ignores the next invitation, we will issue a warrant of arrest.”
The committee also identified other government agencies that have repeatedly failed to comply with legislative oversight, including the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and Nigeria Communication Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT).
Wadada further declared that the NNPCL leadership risks similar action.
“For NNPCL as well, the line is drawn. If the corporation fails to honor the next invitation, we will issue a warrant of arrest and call on President Tinubu to take necessary action against the non-compliant official.”
The committee also warned that the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service and the Governor of the CBN could face similar sanctions.
“The constitutional instruments of governance available to us will be fully deployed against these officials if they continue to undermine the National Assembly’s oversight functions.”
Senator Wadada emphasised that non-compliance with legislative scrutiny amounts to sabotaging President Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope Agenda.’ He warned that the Senate would escalate the matter directly to the President if the affected officials do not change course.