By Ikenna Osuoha
The House of Representatives has summoned the management of Benin, Port Harcourt and Ibadan Distribution Companies (Discos) over non remittance of N100 billion naira into the Federation Account.
The Chairman, House Public Accounts Committee, Rep. Bamidele Salam, summoned the Discos on Monday in Abuja during a public hearing asking the companies to appear on Thursday.
Salam said that the summon followed a series of failures by the affected discos to honour previous invitations.
According to him, the resolution followed consideration of an interim report presented by the chairman of the subcommittee, Rep. Mark Chidi Obetta.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that on Aug. 20, Public Accounts Committee had summoned 11 electricity distribution companies over a cumulative debt of ₦2.6 trillion owed to the Federation Account.
The committee condemned the deliberate acts of legislative contempt by the three discos and warned that stiffer sanctions would be imposed should they fail to appear before the committee on Thursday.
Rep. Salam, expressed deep concern over the long-standing nature of the debts, noting that some of the liabilities had remained unpaid for over a decade.
He stressed the need for urgent and decisive action to recover the funds and ensure they were properly accounted for in the interest of the Nigerian government and the public. (NAN)