Flouting Procurement Act: SGF to sanction accounting officers

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha has threatened to sanction accounting officers who pass procurement documents from Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government without complying with the public procurement Act.

The directive was contained in a circular issued issued to all MDAs.

According to the SGF, such documents will henceforth be ignored, as the Federal Government was now bent on ensuring that budget implementation follows due process.

He said the new directive, followed recommendations from a recent Permanent Secretaries Retreat, where complaints about MDAs flouting the public procurement Act was tabled for deliberation.

Mustapha stressed that, accounting officers are not only responsible for ensuring compliance with the provisions of the Act by their respective MDAs but also liable in person for the breach or contravention of the provisions of the Act and all extant regulations on Procurement.

Recall that the Public Procurement Act 2007 established the Bureau of Public Procurement as the regulatory agency responsible for the monitoring and oversight of public procurement, harmonizing the existing government policies and practices by regulating, setting standards and developing the legal framework and professional capacity for public procurement in Nigeria.

The circular read in part, “Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, of the Federal Government are to ensure that budget implementation follow procurement plans and accord with the administration’s drive to deliver dividends of democracy.

“Procurement processes are to be carried out in a manner that promotes competition, economy and efficiency and in accordance with laid down procedures and time-lines and as may be specified by the Bureau of Public Procurement from time to time, as stipulated in section 16 (1)(b) of the Public Procurement Act 2017.

“Requests from MDAs not accompanied with procurement plans shall not be accorded necessary approvals to proceed, in adherence to the communique issued at the end of the Permanent Secretaries retreat”.