Bill to ensure revenue accruals, disbursement monitoring passes 2nd reading

A Bill for an Act to amend the Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission Act for effective monitoring of revenue accruals and disbursement has passed second reading at the House of Representatives.

The bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Uzoma Nkem-Abonta (PDP-Abia), seeks to aid the commission in performing its statutory functions optimally.

Leading debate on the bill on Wednesday, Nkem-Abonta said that when passed, it would empower the commission and put revenue generation in proper perspective in line with relevant sections of the Constitution.

He pointed out that one of the major functions of the commission was monitoring revenue accruals, adding that it was a field work.

According to him, as it is, the commission is not funded well enough to carry out its duties effectively.

The lawmaker said that the monthly Federal Accounts and Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting for June did not hold because revenue generated by Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was not properly accounted for.

He said that the meeting could not hold because there was no proper monitoring of revenue generated by the corporation.

Other lawmakers, who contributed to the debate, supported passage of the bill, and it was unanimously passed.

In his remarks, the Speaker of the house, Mr Yakubu Dogara, referred the bill to the Committee on Finance for further legislative action.