Senate Moves to Sanction JAMB, NECO, Other Agencies Over Revenue Remittance

The Senate has threatened to invoke its constitutional powers against the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), National Examinations Council (NECO), and other government agencies that failed to honour invitations by its Committee on Finance for an investigative hearing.

The warning followed a point of order raised by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa (Niger East), during Wednesday, 22 July plenary session.

Musa said the committee’s investigative hearings were being conducted in line with Sections 88 and 89 of the Nigerian Constitution to review the financial activities of government agencies and ensure compliance with existing laws.

According to him, the exercise focuses on areas including internally generated revenue, statutory remittances into the Consolidated Revenue Fund, stamp duty collections where applicable, operating surpluses, and adherence to financial regulations.

The lawmaker expressed concern that some agencies invited for the hearings had either failed to appear or rejected the invitations despite being officially notified.

“More concerning is that some have taken the position that they are under no obligation to appear before the committee or submit the requested information, notwithstanding the clear constitutional and statutory powers vested in the National Assembly to conduct oversight over the finances and administration of public institutions,” Musa said.

He warned that continued disregard for legislative invitations could weaken transparency, accountability, and effective oversight of public institutions.

Musa accused some revenue-generating agencies of failing to comply with provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act and the Finance Act 2022 by retaining significant portions of their earnings instead of remitting the required funds to government.

Among the agencies mentioned as failing to honour the committee’s invitations were two major examination bodies in Nigeria: the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and the National Examinations Council (NECO).

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Others listed include the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON).

The list also included the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), and Federal Medical Centre, Jabi, among others.

Reacting to the development, Senate President Godswill Akpabio reaffirmed the constitutional powers of the National Assembly to summon government officials and agencies for oversight purposes.

Akpabio dismissed claims by some agencies that Senate committees lacked the authority to compel their appearance, directing Senator Musa to present a substantive motion seeking enforcement of the invitations.

“Come with a substantive motion. One of the prayers should be to compel them to appear before the National Assembly through your committee,” Akpabio said.

The Senate President warned that further action would be taken against agencies that continue to disregard legislative summons.

“If eventually they do not appear, we know the appropriate action to take,” he said.

The development comes as the Senate intensifies its oversight of revenue-generating agencies, including education and examination bodies responsible for managing funds generated from national examination and admission processes.