The House of Representatives on Monday grilled members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID19 over the expenditure of funds allocated and donated for the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
PTF Chairman and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; and the Minister of Health, Professor Osagie Ehanire, were represented by permanent secretaries.
In attendance at the session were the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu and the National Coordinator of the PTF, Dr Sani Aliyu.
This comes as the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Olusegun Adekunle, revealed that over N22billion have so far been released to the PTF for its operations.
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“The Federal Government has at date released N22,163,130,411 to the PTF Operations Account. N164,929,475 has been utilised for the management of the affairs of returnee evacuees,” he said.
On his part, the Chairman of the House Committee on Public Accounts and leader of the joint committees, Mr Wole Oke, said the PTF members were summoned to give account and clear the air on “insinuations” about COVID-19 funds.
The committee is also issuing a warning to the Accountant General of the Federation, who failed to honour the invitation of the committee, to stop disobeying the summons of the committee or a warrant of arrest would be issued against him.
