NASS’ Futile Probes

Once again, the National Assembly is gearing up for another round of a major investigation. This time, the spotlight is on the much-discussed Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of the nation’s four admittedly moribund refineries, with an eye-popping expenditure of over N11 trillion in the past 13 years.

In a bid that underscores the growing disenchantment of the great mass of Nigerians with the country’s leadership, the Senate has constituted an ad hoc committee led by Senator Isah Jibrin to embark on the probe. The committee has the onerous task of scrutinising contracts awarded for rehabilitation of the Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.

If these refineries had been successfully revitalised, Nigeria could have achieved self-sufficiency in crude oil refining, thereby stabilising petrol prices. Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that this remains a distant dream. While the decision to probe these substantial expenses appears commendable, it is hard to muster much enthusiasm, considering the National Assembly’s history of fruitless investigations that failed to hold the guilty accountable.

In the past, both chambers of the National Assembly had created ad hoc committees to investigate sundry issues, particularly those related to corruption and mismanagement of national resources and their economic consequences. The lawmakers’ constitutional role in oversight seeks to uphold the principles of good governance and accountability to the citizens. Oversight allows lawmakers to monitor the performance of the executive branch and its agencies to ensure efficiency and effectiveness in governance.

The power of oversight enshrined in the constitution and the Rules of the Assembly empowers lawmakers at the state and national levels to conduct thorough investigations into issues of governance and monitor the performance of government entities. Unfortunately, the parliamentarians often seem to see this essential duty as an opportunity to extract funds from the agencies they investigate.

Beyond the headlines

At plenaries, members of the National Assembly frequently raise concerns about alleged graft and mismanagement of public resources, leading to the establishment of standing or ad hoc committees. One notable instance is the 2020 investigation into the alleged illegal expenditure of N81.5 billion by the Prof. Pondei-led Interim Management Committee of the Niger Delta Development Commission. This probe garnered significant public attention, with the majority of Nigerians hoping for justice.

Years after this probe, which found the Interim Management Committee culpable and recommended their prosecution for financial wrongdoing, nothing has come of it.

This scenario echoes countless other investigations into allegations such as annual revenue leakage due to racketeering of $30 billion in forex by multinational oil companies, unaccounted N613 billion in the Nigeria Correctional Service, and the $467 million and N43.5 billion spent by the Nigerian Communications Satellites Limited on NIGCOMSAT satellites, all of which failed. Money is budgeted for these investigations, but they often result in little more than headlines.

What the lawmakers are not aware of or, better still, pretend not to be aware of is the fact that the only persons taking their probes seriously are the lawmakers themselves.

Business as usual?

From its inauguration to date, the current National Assembly has constituted no fewer than thirty probe committees, most of which are ongoing. These include the alleged uneven disbursement of intervention loans to the tune of N483 billion by the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN); the concession of Abuja, Kano airports; Special Committee to investigate oil theft; N4trn revenue loss from tax incentive, waiver ‘abuses’; alleged non-remittance of N2trn, other taxes by NNPCL and the Gagdi-led committee investigating job racketeering in ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

Because of what it uncovered, coupled with the fact that it was enmeshed in allegations of corruption, the Gagdi-led committee stands out.

The committee uncovered so many anomalies ranging from abuse of employment waivers to allegations of outright sale of job placement by some persons in the MDAs. But one spectacular revelation from the committee is the allegation that some highly placed persons at the Federal Character Commission (FCC) were involved in selling jobs.

Appearing before the committee, some FCC commissioners accused the then chairperson, Muheeba Dankaka, of indulging in job racketeering, an allegation he staunchly refuted, insisting that on the contrary it was some of the commissioners that were involved in selling jobs to applicants.

Of course, other mind-boggling revelations were made by the committee and while Nigerians waited with bated breath to know what would form the committee’s recommendation, it was embroiled in allegations of corruption, prompting the call on the anti-graft agencies to investigate the committee.

Weeks after the startling revelation that some characters at the FCC as constituted then were neck-deep in selling jobs, nothing has been heard about bringing those culpable to book, save for the suspicion that it informed the government’s decision to sack the team and appoint a new chairman for the Commission. Again, this has further confirmed the futility of probes by the lawmakers. Sadly, there is nothing to suggest that the reports of similar probe committees will not end up mired in dust on the shelves as usual. And that is the irony.

The National Assembly’s recurrent probes, though ostensibly well-intentioned, often end in disappointment. The lack of concrete outcomes and the apparent failure to hold individuals accountable contribute to a sense of cynicism among the populace. As such, it remains imperative for the legislature to reevaluate its approach to investigations and ensure that they yield meaningful results. It will enhance public trust and fulfill its constitutional mandate.

Until that can be guaranteed, the lawmakers can as well spare us the drama of recurring probes that are ‘all sound and fury signifying nothing’.