The Federal Government, led by President Bola Tinubu, has initiated steps to review the existing Public Procurement Act as part of broader efforts to instill discipline in fiscal expenditures. President Tinubu has appointed the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, to spearhead this process in collaboration with a special committee formed during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday.
During the FEC deliberations, President Tinubu directed all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to review their intended procurements as outlined in the appropriation act. This review aims to identify any discrepancies between the appropriated sums and the actual amounts required to execute the projects, ensuring that these gaps are communicated to the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, provided insights into this directive, stating, “President Bola Tinubu today, in line with the desire to enhance more fiscal discipline and further demonstrate to Nigerians our commitment to serving them better, raised the issue of the reconciliation between the appropriation act, public procurement law, and the fiscal responsibility act.”
Bagudu further explained the President’s instructions, “FEC has set up a committee under the chairmanship of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to review the Public Procurement Act. After a robust discussion, the President directed that all ministries, departments, and agencies should review their intended procurement as provided for in the appropriation such that where there are gaps between appropriated sums and amounts required to execute the projects, it can be brought to the attention of both the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and the Federal Ministry of Finance. This will ensure that the memo the cabinet secretariat provides to the FEC will have clarity on where funding is expected to come from and recommendations to guide effectively the Federal Executive Council’s decisions.”
President Tinubu also directed that the report from the public procurement committee be submitted to him for decision-making. “Mr. President directed that the report of the public procurement committee be provided to him so that he can take decisions accordingly,” Bagudu added.
This initiative underscores the government’s commitment to enhancing fiscal discipline and ensuring efficient use of public funds.
