A report on a recent research conducted by the Paradigm Leadership Support Initiative (PLSI) has revealed how the Federal Government lost N557b between 2013 and 2017 to some infractions relating to award of contracts, unremitted advances to staff and contract inflations, among others.

The research report presented by the organisation, titled: “Achieving accountability and development in Nigeria,” revealed that during the period under review, the Federal Government lost N17b to unretired advances granted to staffs. Also, N26b was lost due to abandonment of contracts or projects.

The Lead Researcher, Osonuga Adedeji, while presenting the report at the five-year celebration of PLSI, yesterday, in Abuja, also revealed that N12.5b was lost to irregular award of contract, and that between 2013 and 2017, the government also lost N8.7b to contracts for supply of goods not delivered to stores.

The report further revealed how N17. 4b was lost to non-remittance of taxes, while a whooping N188. 6b was lost to non-collection of arrears of taxes by the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS). The observed lost of revenue to non-remittance of Internally Generated Revenue to Consolidated Revenue Fund totalled N157b.

About N51.3b was said to have been lost to payment vouchers not presented for audit, overpayment of salaries and allowances, virement without approvals, irregular payment and diversion of grants, among other. The report covered how government lost fund due to inflation of contracts and unauthorised variations, among others.

Adedeji, however, observed the contravention of provisions of financial regulations (2009) by some MDAs, including misappropriation and misapplication of funds, as well as virement of funds without approvals by the National Assembly.

In his remarks, the Executive Director PLSI, Olusegun Elemo, noted that many of the infractions deny ordinary Nigerian access to key services that should improve the quality of lives that could have translated to development.

To improve public accountability, he said Federal Government must speed up process of enacting modern audit law to limit waste and inefficiency in management and utilisation of public funds.

Elemo explained that the report aimed to examine compliance of federal Ministries Departments and agencies of government with public procurement act, financial regulations and other relevant laws over a five-year period to ascertain the level of waste and inefficiency in the utilisation of public funds and consequent impact on Nigeria’s development.