Assessment of the Public Accounts Committees: A Case Study of the 8th Assembly

Abstract

Public Accounts Committees (PACs) have a significant role to play in enhancing oversight and accountability for the use of public funds. Nevertheless, like most issues in Nigeria, the PAC is faced with several challenges in the discharge of its accountability enforcement mandate one of which is the backlog of audit queries. Given this challenge, this study evaluated how the backlog of audit queries affects the performance of oversight by the Public Accounts Committees of the 8th National Assembly; examined the consequences of the backlog of audit queries on the performance of oversight by the Public Accounts Committees of the 8th National Assembly, and identified ways to enhance the performance of oversight by the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly. Given the nature of its specific objectives, the study adopted the mixed research design thus, emphasizing the quantitative (numerical) as well as qualitative (textual) methods of data collection. Data were taken from primary (key informant interviews) and secondary (the sessional reports of the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee, books, journal articles, newspapers, magazines, relevant materials from the internet, official government publications, etc.) sources of data. However, the purposive sampling technique was adopted for the selection of respondents for the key informant interviews. Impliedly, the quantitative and qualitative methods of data analysis were used. The finding from the study showed that the backlog of audit queries results in the loss of interest in PAC activities by its members, the delay in the prosecution of corrupt cases, and the untimely legislative resolutions on accountability standards due to the backlogs of audit queries. However, the study listed the implementation of e-governance, legal review, and capacity building, among others as strategies that would resolve the issue of backlogs of audit queries.