AUDIT BILL: Reasons Buhari Decline Accent

…will Ayine Survives Gross Misconduct Allegations?

By Samuel Asuquo, additional reports from Funmilola Akin and Saheed Ibrahim

In a recent editorial published by one of the major online media, the analysis accused the President of deliberately darting the precious Audit Bill on account of the President’s averse to power-sharing with the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation, particularly on specific portions in the new bill when it becomes a law.

According to the publication, it insinuated the fact that the new role by the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation is expected to exercise absolute powers akin to that of the President, hence the President’s refusal of the bill.

Alas! In furtherance of such effort to get clarities, more importantly on reasons the bill was rejected by President Buhari; the RegentAfrica Times fact findings reveals there are more to the misconceptions over President Buhari’s silence.

A reliable source at the Presidency who does not want his name in print confided in our team of editors on the matter. He revealed that the Presidency declined signing the bill into law on account of the shrouded secrecy in which the Bill was conceived, birthed and conspicuously discharged with collaborated supports from certain elements in the legislative arm, including surrogates from the office of the Head of Service and Civil Service Commission.

He hinted further, “It is strongly believed at the presidency that the composition of the bill was done in disregard to due process, and that the Audit Bill 2018 ought to have gone through the required public hearing as provided by law” He said.

Quizzed further, he posited that though President Buhari is known for his less talk- more actions postures that the President’s body language is clear and succinct on certain issues and that the Audit Bill 2018 is one.

He also spoke on why the presidency considered it imperative to have the new Audit Service Bill handy as integral weapon of his anti-corruption campaign. The source maintained thus, “As this government battles for systemic cleansing, the President would not risk adopting a corruptible masterpiece that the composition of the 2018 Audit Bill represents, and at the same time considered such as a tool to fight corruption. He opined.

The Bill

When passed into law, the Audit Bill (now 2019) seeks to empower the country’s Auditor-General to penalise erring government agencies or officials who refuses to submit their financial statement for auditing.

Further investigations reveal that, the bill also empowers the Auditor-General to withhold the emoluments of defaulting officials as well as withholding the allocations of such agencies.

Auditor General for the Federation can recommends penalty and fines or jail terms or both for erring officials found culpable of misconducts. He could issue warrant of arrest, orders forfeiture of assets or prosecute whoever fails to comply with the provisions of the extant laws guiding auditing of government institutions in Nigeria, without any recourse to the National Assembly, Judiciary or the Presidency.

Also, the new bill indicates that, no Director of Audit or staff of the office can aspire to become the Auditor-General. Moreover, the Auditor General cannot be Chairman of the Audit Commission.

Holy and sacrosanct as the bill might portend however, the large part of the provisions in the 2018 composition of the Audit Service Bill is believed to have been doctored to suit certain interest against the principles of check and balances it tends to serve in governance.

Further enquiries had it that, the smuggling into the bill of tenure elongation, which is the official age from 60 to 65 years for only the Auditor General as against the Civil Service rules and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria indeed polluted the sanctity of the Audit Bill 2018 masterpiece.

Event watchers believe such conspiracies from certain quarters truly calls for withholding of the bill by concern authority, particularly when matters of national debate was done in secret to extend the tenure of the incumbent AuGF as alledged.

Tenure Padding, the NASS Conspiracy

Without prejudice to the oversight functions of the Legislative Arm however, wagging questions on tenure shift as far as the Bill is concern has thrown open more debates.

Pundits argued that Nigerians demands more explanations. Some queries the sinister behind the decision of the National Assembly to have allowed itself to be used by selfish individuals in promoting anarchy of tenure padding outside the Civil Service Rule.

Not a few analysts demands answers to why the statutory Public Hearing was not allowed until a particular government agency was singled out for such a crucial tenure adjustment against the tenets of Civil Service Rules and other agency of the government.

Anonymous voices at the office of the AuGF, described the initial endorsement of the Audit Bill by the Bukola Saraki led National Assembly, as radically playing the second phase of the script that brought the incumbent Auditor General for the Federation, Mr. Anthony Ayine to power in January 2017, according to reports.

RegentAfrica Times recalls that, these accusers premised their worries on series of petitions raised against the appointment of Anthony Mkpe Ayine in January 2017. Concerns workers at the time expressed worries that, the incumbent AuGF was brought from the local government in Cross River state to lead the Audit House against all odds. Unfortunately, their petitions did not see the light of day neither addressed before Ayine’s appointment was rubber stamped by the Senate as widely believed by the protesters.

Experts Insists Bill is Executive Duty

Incidentally, not a few analysts have expressed concerns there might be another break down of law and order at the Audit House.

The extension of the retirement age of the Auditor General from the stipulated sixty years (60) to sixty five (65) as contained in the 2018 Audit Bill as amended and passed by the NASS has been rancorous and still generating ill feelings among career Auditors at the nation’s apex Audit House.

Another reliable source, who also frowned at the section of the Bill that extends AuGF’s tenure, he believes the process was actually skewed to extend the tenure of the incumbent Mr. Ayine by five additional years while others retires at the normal Civil Service stipulated age 60.

This source posited that the trend is not only a threat to the career of other staffs, but will spell doom for the morale and the working spirits in the system.

“This Bill is purely a conspiracy to whittle the power of the Executive Arm of government.”

“This is an Executive Bill and should never have gone to the National Assembly without due process followed.”

“The involvement of the National Assembly in the oversight function of the Executive Arm of government is inimical to the separation of power and the rule of law” The source laments.

Speaking further, he noted thus: “The entire process leading to such an adjustment was fraudulent, more importantly as there is no justification for the tenure elongation of the Auditor General for the Federation only over and above that of the office of the Accountant General for the Federation, or any other similar government agencies in that category.”

“The process was carried out without due consultation with relevant stakeholders.”

“The outcome of the 2018 Audit Bill, was a predetermined fraud orchestrated right from the time of Ayine’s appointment to ensure that Ayine tenure is extended by proxy”

“The former AuGF, Mr. Samuel Ukura also contributed to the renew tenure padding targeted, and it is targeted as covering up of his mess at the EFCC”

“The President should further investigate the process, particularly those that singled-out the tenure elongation for the AuGF.” He added.

Moreover, some of the workers interviewed in the course of this investigations equally laments that, the academic abnormality of tenure elongation was perpetrated under the watchful eyes of Mrs. Winifred Oyo Ita, the Head of Service who is also from Cross Rivers state as Mr. Anthony Ayine, the AuGF.

He continued: “This is a pure case of a rape against the working spirit in our midst at the Auditor-General’s office. This whole thing is happening on the altar of political settlements. The office was initially destroyed but with this renew development has now been completely sacrificed.”

“I urge Mr. President to save this office from imminent death. I make bold to say that the outcome of the exercise has been pre-determined, Mr. President please investigate.” He stressed.

Auditor-General’s Alleged Conspiracy

Citing negative implications the extension of tenure in the public service portends. Many of the workers at the AuGF described the trend as an affront against the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the extant laws of the Civil Service Rules.

The workers, who believes in the internal succession of the highest position as the only panacea that can bring sanity and professionalism into the working system at the Audit House, laments the circumstances with which the Audit Service Bill was muted.

The current leadership at the Audit House is being accused of sit-tight syndrome and conspiracies to extend his stay beyond due date.

“The dreams of those who may aspire to serve their father land at the highest capacity would be cut short. These are staffs that have made their remarkable contribution out of meritorious services to father land.” Another female staff submitted.

She further maintained that, between 2010 when Mr. Samuel Ukura was appointed and 2017 of the Anthony Ayine in the saddle, no less than ten potential Acting Auditor Generals have been submerged.

“Be it as it may, now that the Audit Bill 2018 has been rejected and sent back to the National Assembly, it beats imaginations that no Public Hearing has been announced in respect of any required amendment as the executive arm of government want it to be”

“The information reaching us is that, the Auditor General is heavily funding one Senator Mathew Urhoghide, who is the Chairman, Senate Committee on Public Accounts”

“Rather for a call for the mandatory Public Hearing to make the Bill an all-inclusive right now, especially as President Buhari has rejected the adulterated version, but the sponsored lawmaker out of desperation, is currently using his position to push for a speedy passage of the Bill at the third reading before the 8^th NASS collapses, but we would resist this at the appropriate time. She declared.

“Our concerns now is that, no less than N1billion naira bribe was paid to get members of NASS into the game by the incumbent Auditor General”

‘The implication of these unending manipulations of the Audit Bill is that, the future generations of the staff of the office is at jeopardy and permanently buried if Mr. Ayine’s tenure is extended or continues to lead the Audit House”. Another worker claimed.

Media Investigation Rebuffed by the OAuGF

By our niche, unverified reports is a cancer in the hands of a career journalist, and this was clearly stated in our letter dated 18^th of April, 2019, requesting for a fact finding interview with the Auditor General for the Federation, Mr.

Anthony Ayine.

Our investigation tends to avail all sides at the OAuGF the opportunity to share counter views on these knotty issues, more importantly allegations, including controversial segments in the Audit Service Bill 2018, as amended. All efforts to engage the present leadership at the Audit House were rebuffed. Rather, the Special Assistant to the AuGF referred this medium to the Head of the Legal Unit on account that our letter had been officially addressed by the department.

Incidentally, our encounter with the head of the legal unit made no difference either. The Head of the Legal Unit at the AuGF denied seeing our letter, save for replying to it. Further efforts by RegentAfrica Times’s Editor-in-Chief to see the SA to the AuGF yielded no fruit either, we were told he is no longer available.

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