Service wide vote biggest fraud in Nigeria — Senate c’ttee

The Senate Committee on Public Accounts Thursday described service wide vote as the biggest fraud in Nigeria.

Service wide vote is contingency fund in the national budget under the control of the the Ministry of Finance. In 2021, the Federal Government budgeted N758bn for service wide vote.

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Speaking at the confirmation hearing of Acting Auditor-General of Federation, Aghughu Adolphus, the committee’s chairman, Senator Matthew Uhroghide, said: “Service wide vote is the biggest fraud in Nigeria. It is meant to meet unseen situation, nobody gives account on service wide vote. Standing committees of the Senate do not know anything about its spending.”

Adolphus said his agency lacked the constitutional power to audit the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Ports Authority and other big government agencies.

Adolphus, while responding to question on why the agency had not been able to audit big spenders, said: “For the big spenders,  it’s the constitution that has issue. By virtue of 1999 Constitution, we’ll just provide list of what we need for them and they’ll make their choice. If they decline to give to us, we’ve no power to compel them.”