NationalMirror Reps probe BOI over N176bn disbursement by TORDUE SALEM on Jul 26, 2013 | Posted under: News The House of Representatives has set up a panel to investigate suspicions that the Bank of Industry, BOI, disbursed N176 billon to banks without National Assembly’s approval. In September 2012, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, lodged N176 billion in BOI to be disbursed to various banks. But the lawmakers said BOI disbursed the fund without the approval of the National Assembly under the Power and Airlines Intervention Fund as established by the CBN. The motion entitled: “The Urgent Need to Investigate the Use of Public Funds by the Bank of Industry Under the Power and Airlines Intervention Fund,” which informed the probe, was sponsored by Hon. Bimbo Daramola (ACN-Ekıtı). Raising the motion, Daramola pointed to the breach of the 1999 Constitution by BOI in the administration of the said fund. He said: “As at September 2012, the Central Bank of Nigeria, had disbursed public funds in the sum of about N176 billion to various banks, through the Bank of Industry, BOI, in Nigeria without approval of the National Assembly under the Power and Airlines Intervention Fund as established by the Central Bank of Nigeria. “There are indications that since September 2012, this practice had continued unabated.” The legislator said he was worried that “these disbursements were irregularly made by BOI to 13 deposit money banks, namely: Access Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, GTB Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, FCMB, Diamond Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC, First Bank Plc, Ecobank Plc, UBA Plc, Unity Bank Plc, Mainstreet Bank Plc, and Sky Bank Plc.” Daramola, he was “worried from reports and preponderance of assessment studies that these transactions were not carried out in a manner that is devoid of doubts and violating due private and public sector lending norms and I am concerned that this practice has generated bad-blood among the commercial banks, the banking public, equity investors and depositors”. He added that the execution of the initiative, if not monitored, was susceptible to widespread impunity, abuse of office, and moral hazards in the entire Nigerian economy. The lawmaker said the issue was capable of having a negative effect on the economy as it could worsen inflation, exchange rate and interest rate. Daramola called on the House to mandate an Adhoc Committee to “determine the real amount made available by CBN to BOI for this initiative till date and the situation surrounding subsequent releases”. He also urged the House to investigate and determine the modalities for documentations and approvals regarding all disbursements under the Power and Airlines Intervention Fund, PAIF, by BOI from period up to September 30, 2012 to June 30, 2013, and establish the sources of these funds. Daramola, who is the deputy chairman of the House Committee on Millennium Development Goals, asked the Lower Chamber to investigate and establish the total sums disbursed through the banking system by the BOI and/or sponsoring commercial bank under PAIF, from period up to September 30, 2012, then to June 30, 2013. He also urged the House to “investigate and determine all businesses and/or other entities that are beneficiaries of the BOI’s disbursements as determined in (11), above; determine the terms and conditions under which the sums ascertained in (11) above were disbursed to the beneficiaries, and establish the status of compliance with these terms and conditions; determine to what extent all relevant statutes were complied with in these transactions; and determine the extent to which the objectives that informed this initiative have been met; and report to the House within three weeks”. All the prayers were adopted by the House.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Jul 2013 09:10:26 +0000
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