How PMB Erred in Approving 1Bn ECA Fund

President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria

President Muhammadu Buhari recently approved the withdrawal of the sum of one billion dollars from the Excess Crude Account (ECA) of the federation as recommended by the Nigerian Governors Forum late last year. According to the statement, the money is to help purchase the necessary equipments and ammunition needed to rid the nation of its many security challenges, chief among which is the Boko Haram menace bedevilling the North East.

However, this development does not sit well with the hierarchy of the National Assembly and indeed many Nigerians. Senators and House of Rep members were angered to learn that this approval from the president was given even before the proposal came to their table. They believe such an approval cannot and should not have been granted without their blessing.

But is the president right to boycott the National Assembly on spending of such magnitude? Is the presidency's claims that the ECA is an administrative account which does not require the approval of the National Assembly true? What is the true position of the law on matters of finance and appropriation? We shall from the top.

The first question really should be, is the Excess Crude Account a legitimate account backed by any law of the federation? The ECA, created in 2014 by the GEJ administration to "save for the rainy day", does not really have any mention in the Nigerian constitution. Section four of the constitution deals with the revenue of the nation, the consolidated accounts, public funds and so on. It did not at any point make reference to the ECA, neither does any act of the National Assembly. Therefore, keeping any money in such an account in the first instance is an abuse of process. It is instructive to note that the National Sovereign Investment Act passed in 2011 covers the collection of any excess monies from crude sales for investment purposes for the nation. With this act in place, one wonders why the creation of the ECA which has no legal backing in the first place.

The National Assembly as a body is constituted to appropriate funds for the executive to carry out the functions of government. As the representative of the people, they ought to be approached and told what exactly the purpose of this withdrawal and how the money is intended to be spent. There is no gain saying that previous administrations under very phony circumstances misappropriated funds that were supposedly meant for the security of lives and properties of Nigerians thereby jeopardizing the safety of Nigerians.

One also needs to wonder, where did  the president derive the power to approve funds without appropriation? This is a dangerous precedent that must be nicked in the bud before it festers. On the whole, when one considers the enormous security challenges facing the nation, a billion dollars might not be too much to spend. However,  the right processes and procedures must be adhered to.. The executive should not overstep its boundaries.