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By Tracy Moses
The House of Representatives’ Ad-hoc Committee investigating agricultural subsidies, intervention funds, and grants from 2015 to 2025 has threatened to invoke its constitutional powers against key government agencies and financial institutions that repeatedly ignore parliamentary invitations.
At a hearing on Wednesday at the National Assembly Complex, the committee directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), NIRSAL Microfinance Bank, SunTrust Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank, and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) to appear before it without fail. The panel warned that continued non-compliance would compel the House to take legal measures to enforce their appearance.
The probe follows concerns over the management, utilization, and impact of government spending in Nigeria’s agricultural sector over the past decade. Between 2015 and 2025, the Federal Government, in collaboration with the CBN and various financial institutions, implemented intervention programmes such as the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), the Agribusiness/Small and Medium Enterprise Investment Scheme (AGSMEIS), the Accelerated Agricultural Development Scheme (AADS), and the Nigerian Electricity Stabilisation Fund (NESF), among others.
“These programmes collectively involved the disbursement of trillions of naira through banks, microfinance institutions, and federal agencies,” the committee chairman, Hon. Jamo Aminu, said.
“It is disheartening that despite repeated invitations, some agencies have refused to appear or have ignored this investigative process.”
The panel expressed disappointment over the absence of several institutions and criticised the quality of submissions from Jaiz Bank, Unity Bank, Sterling Bank, and Access Bank. While representatives attended, they failed to provide comprehensive documentation as required.
Aminu warned that the heads of all concerned institutions must personally appear before the committee, giving affected banks one week to submit detailed records in strict compliance with the committee’s guidelines. “This committee will not accept half-truths, cosmetic compliance, or administrative evasions,” he stressed.
“Any misleading or falsified records will attract sanctions under Sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).”
The chairman emphasised that the investigation is not a witch-hunt but a constitutional duty aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, and value for money in public agricultural spending. “Our focus is not merely on how much was released, but on how the funds were applied, who benefited, what was achieved, and the value that accrued to the Nigerian people,” Aminu said.
The committee also plans to conduct forensic reviews and on-site inspections of ministries, agencies, banks, and project locations to verify submissions and confirm the physical existence and impact of funded projects.
During the inauguration of the committee last week, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, represented by Hon. Sunday Umeha, pledged the full support of the House to the probe.
“There can be no national security without food security,” the Speaker said, noting that despite massive agricultural spending over the past decade, food prices remain high and food insecurity persists.
“It is unacceptable that trillions of naira were committed to agriculture with little impact on food security, rural livelihoods, or import dependence,” he added.
The Speaker further warned that any Ministry, Department, Agency, or participating financial institution that fails to honour invitations, withholds information, or provides false records would face summons, contempt proceedings, or warrants in line with constitutional provisions and the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act. “No institution is above the law. No agency is immune from oversight,” he said.
The committee was set up following a House resolution on July 23, 2025, and is probing trillions of naira expended on agricultural programmes by the Federal Government and the CBN between 2015 and September 2025.