Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun
The Federal Government on Monday warned civil servants against stealing
of public funds, stating that the fact that some of them complained of
poor remuneration was not an excuse to steal from the treasury in order
to survive.
It also vowed to stop all forms of inefficiency and wastage in the
utilisation of the nation’s resources.
The government said the rate at which the country’s resources had been
mismanaged in the past was a major reason why Nigeria had not recorded
any significant progress in the area of capital projects.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, stated these in Abuja during
the inauguration of the Efficiency Unit.
She said, “We are going to look up all the causes that make government
spending extremely inefficient and we are going to circulate those
results to the agencies so that they will get a circular saying this is
on paper and if you go above it, the Permanent Secretary or whoever is
approving it needs to have a reason for doing so.
“We are setting a benchmark; at the moment, there are no guidelines; and
where there are no guidelines, there is no sin. So, we need to establish
those guidelines to guide how people spend money.
“We cannot justify stealing and say because my salary is low so it
justifies stealing. Not everybody steals and not everybody is willing to
steal, and stealing is not a way to address low remuneration. Stealing is
stealing and it is a crime; you cannot steal and say because my salary is
low that was why I stole; what about people who have no salaries?
“Stealing is stealing and we must address it. It is not acceptable. We
need to address it and we will do so very aggressively. There is no
excuse for stealing.”
The minister said no amount of fiscal innovation, financial re-
engineering or other economic policies would deliver the desired results
if the manner in which government’s money was being expended was not
carefully controlled.
Adeosun lamented that while much had been said about effects of
corruption on the economy, little attention was given to the damaging
effects of inefficiency and wastage.
She pointed out that a review carried out by the ministry had discovered
wide variations in terms of costs between departments and within agencies
because there were currently no guidelines on spending.
For instance, the minister explained that paper costs, according to the
review, varied by up to 80 per cent between departments, while the range
of prices for airtime flights to the same destinations varied by about
100 per cent.
Adeosun added, “In the few weeks I have spent as the Minister of Finance,
it has become clear that without a radical intervention to manage the
costs of government, no meaningful improvement in our nation will be
forthcoming.
“No amount of fiscal innovation, financial re-engineering or other well
intentioned economic policies will deliver the desired results for as
long as the manner in which government’s money is expended is not
carefully controlled.
“We need to put the fiscal house in order. Inefficient spending is
systematic and very hard to identify since it is often embedded in the
day-to-day activities of the government.”
The minister said by reducing wastage and inefficiency, the Federal
Government would be able to free more funds that would assist in changing
the balance between capital and recurrent expenditure.
She expressed optimism that the Efficiency Unit to be headed by a
director in the Debt Management Office, Ms Patience Oniha, would be a
catalyst for improving the management and delivery of public services.
She said, “We will seek to understand why in many cases, the prices paid
for basic services by the government exceed that attainable in the
private sector. The Federal Government has significant buying power in
the market and this must result in keen pricing of all goods and
services.
“Our own initial reviews have found wide variations in the prices of
basic items between departments and within agencies.
“Printer cartridges of the same specification ranged in price from
N16,000 to N62,000.”
She stated that the disparity would no longer be allowed to continue as
the current economic situation and reduction of oil prices had exposed
the country’s vulnerabilities.
While admitting that there was a need for greater efficiency in
government spending, the finance minister commended President Muhammadu
Buhari for approving the creation of the unit.
When asked if the assignment of the unit would not be in conflict with
the functions of the Bureau of Public Procurement, the minister said
while the BPP had a mandate to check contract processes, the unit would
focus on the day-to-day expenses of the MDAs.
She also said a framework that would ensure that the recommendations of
the unit was binding on all MDAs would be unveiled soon and passed to the
Office of the Head of Service of the Federation.
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