A brief disagreement among lawmakers on Wednesday preceded the House of Representatives’ decision to summon the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, over what it described as more than N16 trillion in unremitted public funds.

The alleged shortfall includes over N5 trillion in operating surplus and about N11 trillion in revenue said to be outstanding and not yet transferred to the federal treasury.

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Audit Report Sparks Inquiry

The summon followed the adoption of a motion presented by the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Bamidele Salam, who cited concerns raised in the Auditor General of the Federation’s 2022 Report.

The report flagged several infractions involving the CBN and other government agencies, including alleged financial liabilities from charges collected through the Remita Revenue Collection System between March 2015 and April 2016—funds lawmakers said were never remitted to government coffers.

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Tension on the Floor

Before the final resolution, the chamber witnessed mild drama as lawmakers debated whether to transfer the matter to an ad-hoc committee or leave it under the oversight of the Public Accounts Committee.

The disagreement highlighted the political sensitivity surrounding the move to compel the CBN Governor to publicly explain the alleged unremitted revenues.

In the end, the House resolved that the Public Accounts Committee should continue its investigation, clearing the path for Cardoso’s appearance in the coming days.

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SERAP’s Push for Accountability

The issue adds to mounting pressure on the CBN. In November, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) issued a formal demand urging Cardoso to provide a detailed account of what it described as N3 trillion in missing or diverted public funds, also cited in the Auditor-General’s 2022 report.

In a letter signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation described the findings as “grave violations of public trust, the Nigerian Constitution, the CBN Act, and international anti-corruption standards.”

SERAP called on the CBN to ensure that all allegedly missing funds are recovered and returned to the treasury, and that officials implicated in mismanagement be handed over to the ICPC and EFCC for investigation and prosecution.