Opinion
Who Is After Bala-Usman As NPA Boss?
In x-raying the suspension of NPA’s MD, Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman, and the probe of the agency under her leadership, Damian Adekunle, writes that with the facts on ground, there could be more to her plights than meets the eye.
It is no longer news that President Muhammadu Buhari recently suspended the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman, and has equally ordered a probe into the alleged failure of the NPA to remit about N165.32 billion, being operating surplus, to the Consolidated Revenue Fund, CRF.
It is recalled that the Federal Ministry of Transportation had in a May 4, 2021 letter to President Buhari claimed that the NPA, under Bala-Usman’s watch, failed to remit the above sum to the CRF from 2016 to 2020. It consequently called for an investigation and audit of the agency’s financial accounts.
As is typical of such reports of alleged corruption, this has been celebrated in the media. Accusation of corruption is the easiest way to rubbish or pull down political office holders in this clime, for as far as an average Nigerian is concerned, such a fellow is guilty as charged until proven innocent.
N165 billion: The facts vs. fables
However, on this NPA matter, the critical question is: Is there really any such thing as unremitted N165 billion?
The facts rendered by the suspended NPA boss in a May 5, 2021 letter to the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, referenced marked MD/17/MF/VOL. XX/541, speak for themselves.
In the expository letter titled “Re: Request for the Record of Remittance of Operating Surplus to the Consolidated Revenue Fund Account by the Nigerian Ports Authority”, Ms. Bala-Usman wrote: “The attention of the Authority has been drawn to a letter conveying Mr. President’s approval of the Federal Ministry of Transportation (FMoT) to conduct an audit of the accounts of the Authority and its remittances to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CFR). This arose from correspondence between the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) and the FMoT where the BOF conveyed to the FMoT the observed shortfall of the Authorities remittances to the CFR.
“We wish to state that the Authority’s basis for arriving at the Operating Surplus due for remittance to the CFR is guided by the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 as amended and further based on the statutory mandate Part 1, Section 3 (1) (b) and (d) whereby the Fiscal Responsibility Commission issued a template for the computation of Operating Surplus for the purpose of calculating amount due for remittance to the CFR.
“Accordingly, the figure so provided by the Budget Office of the Federation as the Operating Surplus for the respective years on which basis they arrived at the shortfall are derived from submission of budgetary provision not the actual amounts derived following the statutory audit of the Authority’s financial statements”.
On the remittances between 2017 and 2018, Ms. Bala-Usman said: “Audited Financial Statements of the Authority for the period 2017 and 2018 (copies herewith attached) provides operating surpluses of N76.782 billion and N71.480 billion for 2017 and 2018, respectively, as contrary to the sums of N133.084 billion arrived at by your Office from the budgetary submission.
“In line with the template issued by the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, the accessible Operating Surplus of the Authority stands at N51.09 billion and N42.51 billion for 2017 and 2018, respectively. These amounts will give rise to a remittance due to the CRF in the sum N40.873 billion and N34.065 billion representing 80 per cent of the surpluses for the year 2017 and 2018. Accordingly, the Authority consequently made a remittance of N42.415 billion and N33.969 billion for the years 2017 and 2018, respectively, for full amount required as remittance for the period”.
Defending the remittances for 2019 and 2020, the MD explained that “The Audit of the 2019 Financial Statement has been completed and awaiting consideration of the Authority’s Board at which point the final figures for the 2019 operating surplus will be determined for consequent computation of the amount due for remittance to the CRF, but thus far, the Authority has made a remittance of N31.683 billion for the 2019 remittance, while the sum of N51.049 billion has also thus far been remitted for the 2019 remittance while awaiting the auditing of the Financial Statement to determine the final amount required for both 2019 and 2020 at which point the Authority will make the payment of the balance as required”.
Based on the above, Bala-Usman clarified: “The Authority’s compilation of its remittances to the CFR are concluded arising from numbers from the Audited Financial Statements using the template forwarded to the Fiscal Responsibility Commission as herewith attached and not budgetary provision.
“The Authority has remitted the full amount due it to CFR for the periods 2017 and 2018 arising from the Operating Surplus derived from the Audited Financial Statement for the period totaling N76.384 billion as evidenced in attached treasury receipts.
“The Authority has remitted a total of N82.687 billion for the period 2019 and 2020 pending the audit of the Financial Statement at which point the amount so computed arising from the value of the Operating Surplus in the audited Financial Statement will be remitted to the CFR.
“We wish to request that Chief of Staff requests the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, who are the statutory custodians of the status of payment to the CRF to provide clarification on the above as to establish the true position of the Authority’s remittances to the CFR”.
The “politricks” of remittable sums
Beside the NPA position being self-explanatory, grapevine has it that the recourse to the Office of the Accountant-General for clearer positions of the law on expected remittances was sequel to the inability of the Director of Finance of NPA, Mr. Mohammed Koko, to furnish the MD with the requisite information. Highly informed sources in the agency alleged that Koko, who ironically is now the Acting MD, repeatedly feigned ignorance.
Many now ask: Did he not fail in his duties, as there is no evidence he was overruled? If NPA is being investigated over matters of finances, shouldn’t the Finance Director be in the dock? How come he now superintends over NPA?
These circumstances fuel the allegation that Koko must have been part of the larger plot to get Ms. Bala-Usman out of the way for allegedly obstructing unwholesome, but some potent political interests, in the matters of juicy contracts at the NPA.
Twists and U-Turn
Those who hold this view currently point to the twists in the NPA saga. Whereas the Ministry of Transport’s memo leading to Bala-Usman’s suspension and NPA‘s probe alleges unremitted Operating Surpluses, the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, while inaugurating the 11-man administrative probe panel, clearly stated that the investigation would focus on contracts.
The committee’s terms of reference, he said, include examining and investigating the administrative policies and strategies adopted by Ms Bala-Usman from 2016 till date and confirming her compliance with relevant laws and rules.
He explained the panel is to: “Examine and investigate issues leading to the termination of other contracts of NPA and confirm compliance with the terms of the respective contracts, court ruling and presidential directives.
“Examine and investigate compliance with communication channel, as obtained in the public service.
“Examine and investigate the procurement of contracts from 2016 to date.
“Come up with suggestions and advice that would strengthen the operations of NPA and forestall such occurrences in future”.
It will also look into “any other matter that may be necessary in the course of the assignment”.
The U-turn has expectedly drawn harsh criticism. But to the critics Amaechi replied: “This is in the discharge of our responsibility as a Ministry and I don’t see why anybody is complaining. What is wrong in looking at what is happening in NPA? As the Minister of Transport for four years, I hardly know what is happening and I want to know now.
“The president agrees with me that it is my responsibility as Minister to find out what is going on.
“It worries me that people are saying we should not ask questions. Nobody has been indicted”.
Instructively, TheCable, an online newspaper, had prior to the panel’s inauguration quoted a member of the panel as divulging that Bala-Usman would now be probed for “insubordination”, no longer non-remittances.
“We are looking at two things. One, the suspended Managing Director was in the habit of communicating directly with the President and bypassing the Honourable Minister. This is gross indiscipline and a breach of public service communication line. That is enough to get her sacked.
“Two, the Minister directed her to restore all Intels’ contracts that were suspended or terminated. What she didn’t know was that the President was in the know of it. She failed to comply. This is insubordination and she is not above discipline.”
On the allegation of non-remittance of N165 billion, a source at the Ministry of Transport told Thisday: “Available evidence shows that the allegation may not be true… it is a matter of reconciliation of what the Budget Office thought should be the remittances with what the actual remittances should be.
“Since audits have been done over the years, there is obviously nothing more to that. It is not as if NPA’s monies are in private banks. Everything is with the CBN, so if there were no remittances, it is just about looking at NPA’s accounts with the CBN”.
On contracts, the source also said: “At NPA, any contract beyond N50 million for goods and services and N200 million for works are referred to the Ministerial Tenders Board (MTB), which is headed by the permanent secretary of the ministry,” he said.
“If we go into probing contracts since 2016, we may end up probing the minister himself. About 70 per cent of the contracts for capital projects go to the MTB, after which the Minister presents them to the federal executive council (FEC), presided over by the president himself, for approval. We will check if all the procedures were followed, but I am personally not optimistic about that. The suspended MD, from indications, is a process person”.
In view of all these, as Nigerians expect the outcome of the probe, many are already reasoning that there is more to Bala-Usman’s ordeal than meets the eyes. The question is: Who is after Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman or is she guilty as charged? The answer is blowing in the air.
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