The senate, on Tuesday, January 17, gave the minister of finance, budget and national planning, Zainab Ahmed, and the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, a three-day ultimatum to submit details of the N23.7 trillion spent by the federal government without the approval of the national assembly.
President Muhammadu Buhari, in December 2022, urged the senate to approve the N23.7 trillion ways and means advances.
The ways and means advance by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been a funding option to the federal government to cater for short-term or emergency finance to fund delayed government expected cash receipt of fiscal deficit.
The red chamber, upon receiving the presidential request, set up an ad hoc committee led by the senate leader, Ibrahim Gobir, to carry out necessary legislative actions on it.
The panel then sent out invitations to the finance minister, the CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, and other heads of federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), that had direct connection with the fiscal document, This Day reports.
However, at the resumption of plenary on Tuesday, Gobir informed his colleagues that the ad hoc panel had not been able to sit because details of the ways and means advances had not been provided by the executive arm of government.
The chamber therefore ordered the minister of finance to liaise with the CBN governor within three days and supply the required information on the request to the ad hoc panel.
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