Despite the fact that more than half of Nigeria’s population are living below the poverty line, and Northern Nigeria suffering from the world’s third-highest level of chronic undernutrition among children Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is aiming to squander N11.36 billion on corporate dressing allowance and other administrative expenses on its 11, 300 staff in 2022.
Action Against Hunger, a global group whose primary goal is to create a better way to deal with hunger, says the silent crisis in Nigeria is caused by lack of access to safe water and sanitation, rising food insecurity, the disruption of basic services due to conflict, and poor knowledge of healthy feeding practices for infants and young children.
Since 2012, North-East has faced insecurity due to conflict with armed insurgent groups. Civilians have limited access to assistance, and food remains a major need in displacement settlements. Prolonged absence of food security, livelihoods, healthcare, education, clean water, and sanitation and hygiene facilities exacerbate risks.
Protection concerns include arbitrary detention, forced conscription, domestic violence, forced and early marriages, trafficking, and sexual exploitation and abuse.
After more than a decade of conflict, the humanitarian crisis in North-East region remains one of the most serious in the world. In 2020, 7.9 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance in Nigeria, yet more than a million people remained beyond the reach of humanitarian actors because they live in areas controlled by armed groups.
Food insecurity remains extremely high as a result of population displacement, climate change and the economic impact of COVID-19. Additionally, the nutrition and health situation remains worrying: only 58% of health infrastructures are functional, and one million people receive less than 15 litres of water per day.
Action Against Hunger says it provided vital monthly food assistance to approximately 209,000 people in Borno and Yobe states in 2020, pointing out, ‘’our team also provided technical support and supplies to families for agriculture, animal husbandry, fishing, vegetable gardens and other income-generating activities to improve food security and community resilience.
‘’We supported health structures, staff, and community volunteers so that they can provide quality primary healthcare and carry out malnutrition prevention activities, targeting pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under five years old.
‘’We improved access to water and sanitation through the rehabilitation and construction of water points and latrines, hygiene promotion, capacity building and advocacy. Our teams distributed hygiene kits, shelters, and non-food items in host communities and displacement camps, and we are contributing to the national effort to end open defecation in Nigeria.’’
Ya Fati’s home and village were destroyed by the conflict in Northern Nigeria. Instead of food rations, she received monthly cash installments through Action Against Hunger’s emergency food assistance program.
She used her cash to pay for shelter for her family, medicine, and food at the local market. “Before, I was dependent on my relatives. I can now feed my family”, she says. Ya Fati has even been able to save a little money from her monthly allocation, which she invested in two sheep, a source of future earnings: “I will try to also fatten my sheep so that I can make my own money.”
Apparently unconcerned, FIRS, in a statement in Abuja, said the N11.36 billion “represents the estimate for key administrative expenses for the whole year that the Service proposed to the National Assembly being an amount that would be incurred when approved, in respect of its over 500 operating offices and functions as well as for its 11,300 workforce”.
Adding, the revenue agency said, “the estimated expenses are for medical expenses for over 11,300 staff, publicity, adverts and taxpayers’ education, welfare packages and festivity allowance to staff, corporate outfit grant (dressing allowance to staff), honorarium and sitting allowance for staff/stakeholders, sporting activities, and postages and courier services”.
This amount, FIRS said, represents merely 5.26 percent of the total budget estimate for the year 2022. The statement described the details of FIRS budget as well-intentioned budgetary estimates put together by the relevant departments in the Service.
The statement said Management “is consciously committed to quality service delivery and staff welfare and will continue to do everything within the limits of available resources to motivate and buoy up the morale of the staff”.
The Service had submitted its 2022 budget to the National Assembly with a proposal to spend N2.5 billion to purchase land, N3billion for office furniture, N1.5billion for photocopying machines, N2.04billion for computers and N500million for the construction of sports facilities.
In 2022, FIRS has earmarked N6billion for its new headquarters, N1billion for generator fueling, N250million for maintenance with a separate, N550 million set aside for purchasing more generators, N2billion to purchase of vehicles, N1.3billion for cleaning and fumigation of its offices nationwide and N1.4billion will be spent on general maintenance services.
It is asking to spend N7.9billion on donations and N200million as contributions to international organisations, N800million for legal services, N1.04billion on bank charges, N9.5billion on welfare packages; N1.1billion on staff retreat about N1.3bn for office stationery and computer consumables while N3billion will be spent on printing non-security documents next year.
FIRS is also proposing to spend N1.4billion on electricity charges, N460million on telephone charges and N1.3billion on security services.
