We borrow to pay salaries, govt’s income is challenged, says Ag. Accountant-General

Anamekwe Nwabuoku, acting accountant-general of the federation (AGF), has said the federal government is facing a financial crunch due to the security challenges across the country, forcing it to borrow money to pay salaries.

Nwabuoku made the disclosure at a retreat organised by the office of the AGF for members of the technical sub-committee on cash management (TSCM) in Abuja.

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Nwabuoku said there is an increase in government expenditure due to rising security challenges and the social needs of the citizenry.

“We have to borrow to augment payment of salaries and wages. This shows we are in very difficult times. Government income is highly challenged,” Nwabuoku said.

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“The theme and objective of the retreat couldn’t have been better captioned, given the fiscal challenges at the moment. Records available indicate that due to dwindling revenues, the treasury had to resort to other sources to augment the payment of federal government public servants.

“There is an increase in government expenditure due to increasing security challenges and social needs of the citizenry.”

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The acting AGF advised that there should be deliberate efforts to revert the trend through fiscal discipline, economic diversification, export sector promotion and plunging revenue leakages, among others, to ensure revenue inflow.

Nigerian Pilot