By Otobong Gabriel, Abuja
A fresh financial scandal has hit the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Councils following an audit report that exposed massive financial irregularities exceeding ₦100 billion across the six councils.
The damning report, submitted by the Auditor-General for the FCT Area Councils to the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee (PAC), indicted all the councils for widespread financial recklessness, poor record-keeping, unremitted taxes, and unexplained expenditures.
The affected councils include Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje, and Kwali.
Presented at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja, the audit findings revealed a troubling pattern of mismanagement, with accumulated outstanding liabilities totalling about ₦7.65 billion as of the year ended December 31, 2021.
These liabilities include unremitted pension deductions, Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) taxes, Value Added Tax (VAT), withholding taxes, unpaid contractor obligations, and debts owed to revenue authorities and pension fund administrators.
A breakdown of the figures showed that AMAC recorded the highest liabilities at ₦2.19 billion, followed by Bwari with ₦1.49 billion and Kwali with ₦1.46 billion.
The report also faulted the councils for failing to properly maintain Fixed Asset Registers, a lapse that increases the risk of asset diversion and losses.
Gwagwalada Area Council was specifically cited for non-current assets worth ₦336 million that were either undocumented or not properly updated.
Further concerns were raised over ₦24.87 billion spent in 2021 on personnel costs, overheads, and capital projects.
Despite an 89 percent increase in spending compared to 2020, auditors noted that about 37 percent of funds allocated to capital projects could not be adequately accounted for.
Subsequent investigations covering 2022 and part of 2023 reportedly showed continued violations of financial regulations, including understatement of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), unauthorized disposal of public assets, failure to disclose statutory revenues, and non-remittance of withholding taxes.
In a more serious development, the report alleged that all six councils deliberately failed to audit and submit their financial statements for 2023, 2024, and 2025, in breach of statutory requirements.
Reacting to the findings, Chairman of the House Public Accounts Committee, Hon. Bamidele Salam, confirmed that the report had been formally received and that summons had been issued to the chairmen of the six councils and their finance directors.
Salam warned that failure to appear before the committee on Wednesday, February 11, 2026, would compel the House to invoke its constitutional powers to issue warrants of arrest.
Expressing dissatisfaction with what he described as a lack of transparency and accountability by the council leadership, the lawmaker stressed that public funds must be managed prudently.
He vowed that any official found culpable would be held accountable in line with constitutional provisions.
The unfolding revelations have heightened concerns about governance and financial discipline within the FCT councils, with observers calling for swift action to restore public trust.
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