The House of Representatives has summoned the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, and the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, over an outstanding ₦75 billion reportedly borrowed from the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).
The House Public Accounts Committee directed the officials to appear before it on Thursday, October 22, 2026 to provide a clear repayment plan and commit to a definite date for returning the funds.
At a hearing in Abuja on Friday October 16, 2026 the committee, chaired by its Deputy Chairman, Jeremiah Umaru, raised concerns about government agencies borrowing funds belonging to other institutions without clear repayment terms or established guidelines. Umaru said the officials must appear personally to explain when the money would be repaid.
The lawmakers warned that taking funds meant for basic education could affect UBEC’s programmes across the country.
They also questioned reported monthly or quarterly deductions of up to 50 per cent from some government agencies’ revenues, saying the practice had made it difficult for some agencies to pay salaries and fund essential operations.
Responding on behalf of the Accountant-General, Deputy Director Ezeoke Christopher described the borrowings as internal arrangements to address funding gaps and meet statutory obligations. He said the arrangements were partly driven by personnel costs reportedly exceeding ₦1 trillion monthly. The office also disclosed that efforts had been made to refund as much as ₦90 billion, while more than ₦70 billion remained outstanding.
However, the explanations from Christopher and the Ministry of Finance’s Permanent Secretary, Muhammed Danjuma, did not satisfy the committee, which insisted that the minister and Accountant-General must personally provide a repayment timetable.
UBEC Executive Secretary, Olajumon Akinyemi, also told the committee that more than 20 states accessed their matching grants in 2025, while over 13 states had accessed theirs in 2026.
He identified Imo, Ogun, Anambra, Lagos, Kwara and Katsina as states with outstanding issues relating to counterpart funding.
Akinyemi further disclosed that the Universal Basic Education Act was before the National Assembly for amendment to allow UBEC to redeploy funds that states fail to access after two years. The committee subsequently directed Oyedele, Ogunjimi and Akinyemi to appear in person on October 22, 2026 to address the outstanding debt and related funding issues.