Senate Probe Stalls Amid Discrepancy: CBN Documents Reveal N7.5 Trillion Ways and Means Under Buhari, Not N30 Trillion

New revelations have thrown the Senate’s probe into the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) ways and means advances into disarray, as official documents show that these loans to President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration totaled N7.5 trillion as of December 2022. This starkly contrasts with the N30 trillion figure previously reported by a Senate joint committee, prompting widespread confusion and concern.

Ways and means serves as a crucial tool through which the CBN provides financial support for federal government budget deficits. However, the CBN Act restricts such advances to 5 percent of the previous year’s revenue, a limit frequently exceeded over the years.

The breakdown of the latest findings reveals a complex financial landscape. By December 19, 2022, the federal government had accumulated an overdraft totaling N22,719,703,774,306.90 at the CBN. This figure encompassed N7,531,819,048,929.66 under ways and means, alongside N13,725,408,432,557.50 for transaction costs related to federal government securities in the capital market, and N4,618,829,652,047.41 in interest charges on the overdraft.

Interestingly, these loans were not included in the federal government’s debt stock until December 2022, when President Buhari formally requested the National Assembly to rectify the situation.

According to the documents, President Buhari made only three official requests for ways and means advances during his tenure, despite the facility being utilized more frequently due to sovereign risks associated with securities. The largest disbursement, nearly N2 trillion, occurred in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic to fund crucial intervention programs amidst falling government revenues.

Moreover, significant portions of these funds were allocated to entities like the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET), which received N1.3 trillion under a “payment assurance facility” aimed at stabilizing the electricity sector.

The revelations have cast a shadow over the ongoing Senate probe initiated by Isah Jibrin (Kogi East), which aimed to investigate the alleged N30 trillion in ways and means advances. Despite its inception in March 2024 and a deadline long past, the 17-member ad hoc committee has yet to produce a report.

The committee’s mandate included demanding a comprehensive breakdown of overdrafts from 2015 to 2022, evidence of presidential approvals, lists of beneficiary ministries, departments, agencies, and local governments, terms and conditions of disbursements, and all related correspondences.

Efforts by The Cable to reach Chairman Isah Jibrin for comment on the current status of the probe have been unsuccessful, reflecting the secrecy surrounding the investigation as urged by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during its inauguration.

Meanwhile, the CBN, under new leadership by Olayemi Cardoso, has declared a halt to ways and means advances until outstanding debts are settled, underscoring the urgency and complexity of the financial situation facing Nigeria today.