A damning audit report has exposed the National Assembly Service Commission (NASC) for inflating contracts worth N6.93 billion without following proper procurement procedures, leading to recommendations for full refund and potential sanctions.
Contract Irregularities Uncovered
The 2022 Auditor General for the Federation report, which examined non-compliance and internal control weaknesses across ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), revealed that the NASC paid N11.65 billion to a construction company on August 11, 2020 for building the National Assembly Service Commission office complex with a 24-month completion timeline.
Auditors discovered that on November 29, 2023, the commission approved an upward contract review of N6.93 billion – representing more than 50% of the original contract value – for converting a roof garden to office space without following due process.
Due Process Violations
The audit found that the NASC failed to comply with established procurement regulations. According to Paragraph 2 of the Establishment Circular with Ref. no. SGF/OP/I/S.3/VIII/124 dated August 25, 2009, all contracts requiring variations must be submitted to the Bureau of Public Procurement for review and issuance of a due process certificate of "No objection" before approval by the appropriate tenders board.
Investigators noted several critical omissions during their examination:
- No bill of quantity for the upward review was presented for audit
- The bill of quantity for the initial N11.65 billion contract was not priced
- Essential procurement documents including needs assessment, newspaper advertisements, bidding process records, contract agreements, bidders' quotations, and tender board minutes were missing
- Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval and Bureau of Public Procurement's certificate of no objection were not provided
Auditor General's Recommendations
Following the management's failure to respond to audit queries, the Auditor General has issued strong recommendations. The Chairman of the NASC must account to the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly for both the N11.65 billion awarded without due process and the N6.93 billion in inflated contract costs.
The commission has been directed to recover and remit the N6.93 billion to the treasury and provide evidence of remittance to the Public Accounts Committee. Failure to comply will trigger sanctions related to contract inflation and unauthorized variations as prescribed in paragraphs 3102 and 3103 of the Financial Regulations (2009).
Broader Revenue Remittance Issues
The comprehensive audit report also uncovered significant under-remittance of internally generated revenue to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) by several MDAs. Seven agencies collectively failed to remit N1.47 trillion, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) accounting for the largest portion at N1.45 trillion.
At the other end of the spectrum, the National Eye Centre in Kaduna had the smallest unremitted amount of N1.09 million. Additionally, 18 other MDAs failed to remit N1.85 billion in internally generated revenue, with the Federal University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State, recording the highest figure of N578,957,098.08 and the Federal Polytechnic of Oil and Gas, Bonny, Rivers State, having the least amount of N1.55 million.
The report attributed these financial irregularities to weaknesses in the internal control system at the National Assembly Service Commission, raising serious concerns about financial management practices within government agencies.
