Reps Demand ITF’s N12 Billion Accountability and Seek Clarification on N39 Billion Prepaid Meter Expenditure

The House of Representatives has mandated the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) to provide clarification regarding a significant variance of over N12 billion in their budget actuals as of December 31, 2022. This directive was issued by Rep. James Falake, the Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, during an interactive session held in Abuja where the ITF management presented the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper.

Expressing profound concern, Rep. Faleke highlighted the failure of the ITF management to actively pursue revenue generation from the extensive pool of over 128,000 private and public quoted companies in Nigeria. After a thorough examination of various financial statements presented to the Committee, Faleke raised questions about the discrepancies compared to the audited report submitted by the ITF, revealing a deficit exceeding N12 billion.

In addition to the financial queries, Rep. Faleke delved into the ITF’s operating expenditure of N39.8 billion, juxtaposed with a total revenue of N45.1 billion, all while the organization maintained a staff of only 2,691 nationwide. He emphasized that if the ITF failed to account for the difference within 24 hours, the committee would compel the organization to refund the entire N3 billion to government coffers.

Mrs. Safiya Mansur, the Director of Finance and Accounts at ITF, provided insight into the fund’s revenue sources, stating that it comes from the one percent training contributions from both public and private companies. She revealed that out of the 128,000 registered contributing companies, only 57,000 are up to date in their contributions. To enforce compliance, she explained that the ITF has intensified monitoring of defaulting companies, some of which resorted to litigation, but the issues were later resolved through the intervention of the previous house committee.

Expanding on the matter, Rep. Faleke urged the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to clarify its decision to register a company lacking the capability to deliver, which subsequently received N39 billion for the provision of prepaid meters to consumers. Faleke disclosed that Ziglasis, a company contracted by the Federal Ministry of Power, was paid N39 billion for supplying prepaid meters but failed to fulfill the project obligations after receiving the funds.

The committee raised concerns over the licensing of Ziglasis by the Electricity regulator, NERC, despite the company’s failure to deliver on the contracted project. Rep. Faleke directed Mr. Musiliu Oseni, the vice Chairman of NERC, to bring the Managing Director of Ziglasis and officials from the Ministry of Power before the House on Nov 14 to provide explanations on why the company had not fulfilled its contractual obligations despite receiving taxpayers’ money.