The House of Representatives has set up an ad-hoc committee to probe debts owed to the Federal Government by state actors, private organisations, and Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), appointing Oluwole Oke as chairman of the panel
The decision followed the adoption of a motion moved during plenary by Salisu Yusuf and five other lawmakers.
The committee is tasked with reviewing outstanding liabilities owed to the Federal Government, identifying debtors, assessing recovery efforts by relevant agencies, and recommending strategies for recovering the funds.
Presenting the motion, Yusuf raised concerns about Nigeria’s rising debt profile and weakening revenue base, warning that failure to recover funds owed to the government was worsening fiscal pressure.
He stated, “As of September 30, 2025, Nigeria’s total public debt surged to N153.29tn, driven by increased domestic borrowing and currency depreciation.”
He added, “The debt portfolio composed of over 53% domestic debt and roughly 47% external with debt servicing consuming a significant 47.85% of government revenue in the first nine months of 2025.”
Yusuf noted that many countries, including Nigeria, resorted to borrowing and policy measures after the COVID-19 pandemic to stabilise their economies.
He said, “Most countries around the world, including Nigeria had recourse to borrow and deploy other monetary policy tools to deal with economic challenges.”
He also highlighted that some reforms under the current administration have contributed to stabilising the naira in recent months.
However, he stressed that more focus is needed on recovering outstanding funds owed to the Federal Government rather than relying heavily on borrowing.
He said, “The House is aware that the Federal Government of Nigeria is owed huge sums of money within and outside the country, including judgment debts.”
According to him, these debts are owed by state and non-state actors as well as MDAs.
He also referenced past reforms aimed at improving financial accountability, including the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit established in 2015.
“We are further aware of the establishment of the Presidential Initiative on Continuous Audit in 2015 to set up systems and frameworks to oversee finance and spending of Federal Government revenue aimed at achieving improved efficiency, effectiveness and accountability,” he added.
The House mandated the committee to carry out a full investigation and submit its report within four weeks for further legislative action.
Lawmakers said the move is aimed at improving revenue generation and reducing reliance on borrowing amid rising debt servicing costs and fiscal constraints.
