The House of Representatives committee on public accountant has decried the persistent inadequate funding of the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAuGF).

Chairman of the committee, Rep. Bamidele Salam (PDP-Osun), raised the concern at the 2026 budget defence session on Wednesday in Abuja. 

Mr Salam cautioned that persistent underfunding of the nation’s supreme audit institution could further entrench corruption and weaken accountability system.

He said that the N15,881,134,488 allocated to the OAuGF for 2026 operations was only 0.027 per cent of the N58.4 trillion federal government budget for the year.

According to him, the allocation is grossly disproportionate for the constitutional responsibilities of the office which is mandated to audit over 1,000 agencies of government and government-funded institutions.

Mr Salam stated that it was unrealistic to expect the organisation to effectively scrutinise a proposed expenditure of N58.4 trillion with such minimal funding.

The lawmaker said that as a committee overnighting the agency, it was known to the committee that due to budgetary constraints in previous years, only five foreign missions of the 100 were audited.

Mr Salam said that in the 2025 fiscal year, only four per cent of the capital allocation to the office was released, significantly impairing its operational capacity.

He said that documents at the disposal of the committee showed that N5.3 billion was earmarked for personnel costs, N5.6 billion for overheads and N4.8 billion for capital expenditure. 

Mr Salam said that without adequate and timely release of funds, particularly capital allocations, the institution would remain constrained in deploying modern audit technology, recruiting and retaining qualified professionals for institutional efficiency.

According to him, the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) states that supreme audit institutions must enjoy sufficient, independent and secured funding to carry out their mandates without interference. 

Mr Salam also underscored the importance of budgetary autonomy, noting that audit institutions were ideally expected to submit their budget proposals directly to the legislature or a designated parliamentary committee to safeguard their independence.

He said that weakening oversight institutions through inadequate financing ultimately undermined transparency and accountability in public financial management.

“This is associated with weak institutions, which have contributed to the corruption ravaging our country,” Mr Salam stated.

He, therefore, urged the federal government and relevant stakeholders to prioritise adequate appropriation and full release of funds to the office to enhance its capacity to perform its constitutional mandate effectively and proactively.

This, he said, would help in preventing corruption, waste and mismanagement of public resources.

(NAN)