The Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives has asked the Bank of Industry about the uncollected grants for micro, small, and medium enterprises given to 19,538 Nigerians to help with the COVID-19 health crisis.
During a hearing in Abuja on Tuesday, the committee continued its investigation into the alleged mishandling of COVID-19 intervention funds by government departments. The committee instructed the bank's management to provide relevant documents about all the money that was given out.
The bank's Managing Director, Mr Olasupo Olusi, was not present but instead, the Executive Director of Small and Medium Enterprises, Mr Omar Shekarau, represented him. He faced questions about the COVID-19 funds managed by the bank on behalf of the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the National Export Promotion Council.
Omar stated that the bank received N75 billion on behalf of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
He explained, "Beneficiaries fell under five different categories, including payroll support totaling N47.59bn, MSME grants totaling N4.12bn, artisan and transport support totaling N11.95bn, MSME offtake totaling N2.34bn, and Corporate Affairs Commission formalisation support totaling N1.49bn."
"12 per cent of the N75 billion, totaling N9 billion, was allocated to the Bank of Industry as administrative expenses for the project."
"Under the Guaranteed Offtake Scheme, 19,538 beneficiaries did not deliver their items after receiving 30 per cent upfront payment, which was a breach of contract with the Federal Government."
He also mentioned that the beneficiaries of the intervention programs included artisans, transporters, small business owners, and staff of private and public schools.
In response to the committee's query about the methods for recovering the MSME offtake, the Executive Director mentioned that the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency is responsible for collecting the loan payments.
Because the bank did not provide the necessary documents, the committee unanimously decided that the agency must promptly submit relevant records about all the disbursements.
