From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC), on Wednesday, said that Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), in recent times, have failed to remit over N1.2 trillion to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) of the Federal Government.
FRC Executive Secretary Victor Muruako stated this in Abuja while briefing National Assembly correspondents on the activities of the commission.
Muruako explained that although MDAs and Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) are expected by law to remit 80 per cent of their operating surplus to the CRF, about 32 agencies failed to submit their audited account to the commission to enable it calculate their operating surplus.
The Executive Secretary noted that the FRC since it establishment in 2009 has contributed immensely to the macroeconomic management of the country’s economy.
According to him, through the efforts of the commission, over N2.15 trillion has been remitted to the CRF by MDAs.
‘GOEs and Corporations are by the Act committed to remit 80 per cent of their operating surpluses to the CRF of the federal government. The payment of operating surplus into the CRF is borne out of the need for government to generate funds in order to meet revenue requirements in its annual budget execution… stated.
‘From our records, the total figure paid as operating surplus since the establishment of FRC to date is beyond N2.15 trillion, which by the way , could not have been possible without the Act and the Commission, given that there would have been no law, rule, regulation or institution requiring such returns,’ Muruako stated.
‘Sadly many MDAs still persist in defaulting and practically keeping money away from the federal government’s reach for funding its budget.
‘Our records indicate that over N1.2 trillion is still in the hands of defaulting MDAs. These figures are confirmed from our analysis of the annual audited financial reports submitted to our Commission by the concerned agencies,’ he explained.