The Federal Government on Monday warned civil servants against stealing of public funds, stating that the fact that some of them complained of poor remuneration was not an excuse to steal from the treasury in order to survive.

It also vowed to stop all forms of inefficiency and wastage in the utilisation of the nation’s resources.

The government said the rate at which the country’s resources had been mismanaged in the past was a major reason why Nigeria had not recorded any significant progress in the area of capital projects.

The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, stated these in Abuja during the inauguration of the Efficiency Unit.

She said, “We are going to look up all the causes that make government spending extremely inefficient and we are going to circulate those results to the agencies so that they will get a circular saying this is on paper and if you go above it, the Permanent Secretary or whoever is approving it needs to have a reason for doing so.

“We are setting a benchmark; at the moment, there are no guidelines; and where there are no guidelines, there is no sin. So, we need to establish those guidelines to guide how people spend money.

“We cannot justify stealing and say because my salary is low so it justifies stealing. Not everybody steals and not everybody is willing to steal, and stealing is not a way to address low remuneration. Stealing is stealing and it is a crime; you cannot steal and say because my salary is low that was why I stole; what about people who have no salaries?

“Stealing is stealing and we must address it. It is not acceptable. We need to address it and we will do so very aggressively. There is no excuse for stealing.”

The minister said no amount of fiscal innovation, financial re-engineering or other economic policies would deliver the desired results if the manner in which government’s money was being expended was not carefully controlled.

Adeosun lamented that while much had been said about effects of corruption on the economy, little attention was given to the damaging effects of inefficiency and wastage.

She pointed out that a review carried out by the ministry had discovered wide variations in terms of costs between departments and within agencies because there were currently no guidelines on spending.

For instance, the minister explained that paper costs, according to the review, varied by up to 80 per cent between departments, while the range of prices for airtime flights to the same destinations varied by about 100 per cent.

Adeosun added, “In the few weeks I have spent as the Minister of Finance, it has become clear that without a radical intervention to manage the costs of government, no meaningful improvement in our nation will be forthcoming.

“No amount of fiscal innovation, financial re-engineering or other well intentioned economic policies will deliver the desired results for as long as the manner in which government’s money is expended is not carefully controlled.

“We need to put the fiscal house in order. Inefficient spending is systematic and very hard to identify since it is often embedded in the day-to-day activities of the government.”

The minister said by reducing wastage and inefficiency, the Federal Government would be able to free more funds that would assist in changing the balance between capital and recurrent expenditure.

She expressed optimism that the Efficiency Unit to be headed by a director in the Debt Management Office, Ms Patience Oniha, would be a catalyst for improving the management and delivery of public services.

She said, “We will seek to understand why in many cases, the prices paid for basic services by the government exceed that attainable in the private sector. The Federal Government has significant buying power in the market and this must result in keen pricing of all goods and services.

“Our own initial reviews have found wide variations in the prices of basic items between departments and within agencies.

“Printer cartridges of the same specification ranged in price from N16,000 to N62,000.”

She stated that the disparity would no longer be allowed to continue as the current economic situation and reduction of oil prices had exposed the country’s vulnerabilities.

While admitting that there was a need for greater efficiency in government spending, the finance minister commended President Muhammadu Buhari for approving the creation of the unit.

When asked if the assignment of the unit would not be in conflict with the functions of the Bureau of Public Procurement, the minister said while the BPP had a mandate to check contract processes, the unit would focus on the day-to-day expenses of the MDAs.

She also said a framework that would ensure that the recommendations of the unit was binding on all MDAs would be unveiled soon and passed to the Office of the Head of Service of the Federation.

[Punch News]