The six Area Council Chairmen in the Federal Capital Territory have again failed to appear before the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee to respond to questions over alleged financial infractions estimated at N100 billion.
The chairmen had requested September 22, 2026, to appear before the committee but neither attended the session nor sent representatives.
Consequently, the committee has issued a final seven-day summons to the Directors of Personnel Management and Finance and the Heads of Audit of the six councils, directing them to appear on October 14, 2026, or face sanctions under the relevant service rules.
The audit queries are contained in the Annual Audit Report of the Auditor-General for the six FCT Area Councils covering the financial year ended December 31, 2021.
The councils are Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali.
The report identified outstanding liabilities of about N7.65bn arising from unremitted pension deductions, Pay As You Earn, Value Added Tax and withholding tax, as well as unpaid obligations to contractors.
A breakdown showed that AMAC had outstanding liabilities of N2.19bn, followed by Bwari with N1.49bn and Kwali with N1.46bn.
Gwagwalada accounted for N1.01bn, Kuje N892.2m and Abaji N593.8m.
The audit report stated: “The Auditor General for the Six Area Councils reported in the annual report of the year 2021 that the Six Area Councils had outstanding liabilities of N7.6bn as at December 31, 2021 comprising unremitted pension deduction, unremitted Pay as You Earn (PAYE), unpaid capital projects, unpaid value added tax and withholding tax.”
The liabilities, according to the report, were due for remittance to the Nigeria Revenue Service, FCT Inland Revenue Service, Pension Fund Administrators and contractors.
The Auditor-General also faulted the councils for failing to properly maintain and update their fixed asset registers.
The report specifically cited Gwagwalada Area Council, where non-current assets valued at N336m were allegedly not properly recorded and updated.
It stated: “The Auditor General for the Six Area Council reported that the value of non-current assets of Gwagwalada Area Council stood at N336m. However, the Auditor General observed that the ledger records of the non-current assets were not properly maintained and updated when due, which could give room for loss of assets without being traced. This exception is common among other FCT Area Councils.”
The audit report also raised questions over N24.87bn spent by the six councils on personnel, overheads and capital expenditure in 2021.
The breakdown showed that AMAC spent N5.03bn, Gwagwalada N4.66bn, Kuje N3.85bn, Kwali N3.84bn, Bwari N3.74bn and Abaji N3.71bn.
The committee is seeking explanations and supporting documents for the expenditure, particularly the capital component.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Bamidele Salam, said the councils had repeatedly failed to honour invitations or submit documents required to resolve the audit queries.
He said, “The last date of appearance of the Abuja Area Councils was September 22, 2026, which was a date they requested and which was graciously granted by the committee. Yet, they failed to appear or send in any representation.
“The committee has therefore decided to issue summons to the Directors of Personnel Management and Finance of these local governments, including their Heads of Audit, to appear without fail on Wednesday, October 14, failure of which they will be made to bear consequences according to service rules.”
The committee also raised concerns over findings contained in audit reports for 2022 and part of 2023, including alleged understatement of Internally Generated Revenue, unauthorised disposal of assets, non-disclosure of statutory revenue and non-remittance of withholding tax to the appropriate authorities.
Salam further disclosed that the councils had failed to audit and submit their financial accounts for 2023, 2024 and 2025, contrary to statutory requirements.
He said public funds must be managed with transparency and prudence, warning that officials found culpable would be held accountable under the law.
Under the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the Public Accounts Committee is empowered to examine audited accounts of public institutions and investigate financial irregularities identified by the Auditor-General.
The latest summons is the committee’s attempt to compel the relevant officials of the six FCT Area Councils to provide explanations and supporting documents on the outstanding audit queries.