Senate Indicts Bank of Agric Over N3.2bn Allegedly Disbursed to 10 Unnamed Tractor Vendor

*Demands recovery from beneficiaries

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The Senate has indicted the Bank of Agriculture in Kaduna for allegedly disbursing N3.2 billion as loan to 10 vendors for the purpose of purchasing tractors and other equipment.

They were meant to be allocated to the end users.
The indictment was sequel to the 2016 report of Auditor General of the Federation, which was scrutinised and considered by the Senate Public Accounts Committee chaired by Senator Mathew Uhroghide.

The Committee indicted the management of the bank for being unable to account for N3.2 billion disbursed to 10 vendors out of the N3.6 billion provided for in the 2015 fiscal budget of the federal government through the bank.
It was gathered that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture selected the 10 unnamed vendors for the management of the Bank of Agriculture which thereafter disbursed the N3.2 billion.

The loan has four years expiry date.
The Senate, after adopting the report of the Committee demanded the recovery of the N3.2 billion from the 10 unnamed vendors.
Part of the audit query read: “The sum of  N3,200,592,007.00 was  disbursed  out  of the   N3,600,000,000.00  provided  between  24th  March, 2015 and  17th  November 2015,  by  the  federal  government  through  the  Bank  to  10      vendors  selected  by  the Ministry  of  Agriculture  to  purchase  tractors  and  other  equipment  for  allocation  to  end users.”

The beneficiaries were expected to make repayment through Service Provider Operators (SPOs) under a revolving fund  arrangement  with  expected  multiplication effect  on  the  national  Agricultural  mechanisation  agenda.  

“The Bank was  to  monitor  and supervise  the  disbursement  as  well  as  ensure  recovery  of  the  funds  for  further  lending to  new  participants.  However, the  entire  revolving  fund  could  not  be  accounted  for  by the Bank’s management.  

“The Managing Director  was  communicated  to  account  for  all  the  amounts involved.”
However, in response, the Bank of Agriculture forwarded a written response to the Senate panel which was not accepted.
Part of the Bank’s written response read, “Programme was structured with a four  year loan tenor commencing from the date of release of the machinery/equipment to the Centre.  

“Since the machinery/equipment were not released on the same day, the expiry dates of the machinery loans also vary”