The Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Ways and Means Advance has accused the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of hindering its investigation into the N30 trillion Ways and Means Advance and the Anchor Borrowers’ programme under former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!This accusation surfaced after the committee received an interim report from its consultants at a meeting where they expressed frustration over the bank’s failure to provide crucial documents required for the probe. The committee, which was inaugurated a year ago by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, revealed that the delay has significantly hindered the progress of the investigation.
Senator Isah Jibrin, Chairman of the committee, strongly criticized the CBN for withholding essential information despite repeated requests. He highlighted major infractions in the preliminary reports provided by the CBN.
“It’s not the information we wanted to be given,” Jibrin said. “We handed over the documents to the consultants, and when they presented us with this interim report, our original intention was to hold onto it until the final report was available. But we were forced to make the interim report public so that Nigerians are aware of the issue. The problem lies in the Central Bank of Nigeria continuously denying us access to the necessary documents to conclude this investigation. That’s the truth,” he added.
Jibrin also revealed that he had personally met with the CBN’s deputy governor, Bala, and that promises had been made, but no action followed. He further mentioned that the Senate Clerk and the consultants had made repeated attempts to engage directly with the CBN, but nothing had materialized.
Despite claims by Hamisu Abdullahi, the Director of Banking Services at the CBN, that all requested documents had been provided, Jibrin refuted these assertions, insisting that the facts contradict the CBN’s statement.
The committee has now issued a stern warning to CBN representatives, stressing the need for full disclosure of how the funds were utilized to address Nigeria’s economic challenges. The Senate remains committed to ensuring accountability and transparency in the management of public funds, and it is determined to continue pressing for the necessary documents to complete the investigation.
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