Senate Queries IST Over N16m Fumigation Bill Amid Hardship

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The Senate on Tuesday grilled the management of the Investments and Securities Tribunal (IST) over its expenditure of N16 million on office cleaning and fumigation in 2025, describing the spending as questionable at a time of widespread economic strain.

The scrutiny came during the tribunal’s defence of its 2026 budget before the Senate Committee on Capital Market, where lawmakers raised concerns about what they considered misplaced priorities in the agency’s expenditure profile.

The IST, a specialised fast-track civil court established under the Investments and Securities Act 2007 and recently amended in 2025, adjudicates capital market disputes, with appeals lying at the Court of Appeal.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Osita Izunaso (APC, Imo West), led the questioning, demanding justification for the N16 million spent on cleaning and fumigation out of the N30 million appropriated for the item in the 2025 budget.

Izunaso queried why such a substantial amount was channelled into cleaning services, while critical areas such as public awareness and outreach appeared underfunded, despite low visibility of the tribunal’s activities among investors and market operators.

Chairman of the tribunal, Aminu Junaidu, defended the expenditure, explaining that fumigation is carried out quarterly to safeguard sensitive documents from rodents and other pests.

He added that cleaning services were outsourced across the tribunal’s zonal offices, contributing to the cost.

“We must protect our records. We have sensitive documents that must not be destroyed. That is why fumigation is done regularly,” he told the committee.

However, lawmakers maintained that in a period of fiscal constraints, agencies must demonstrate prudence and align spending with public expectations.

The committee also took issue with the tribunal’s continued reliance on stationery and consumables, despite increasing calls for digitisation of government operations.

Senator Ogoshi Onawo (Nasarawa South) criticised what he described as excessive spending on office supplies, urging the tribunal to embrace digital processes to cut costs.

According to the 2025 budget performance report presented to the committee, the IST spent N6.134 million on office stationery and computer consumables.

Responding, Junaidu said the tribunal’s work requires extensive documentation, including the writing of rulings and judgments, as well as the production of Certified True Copies (CTCs) for litigants and other applicants.

“It is a tribunal. We must write our rulings and judgments. We photocopy and give to litigants. Whoever applies for a CTC, we must provide it. That is why our consumption is high,” he explained.

Although applicants pay for certified copies, Junaidu clarified that the fees, about N10 per page, are remitted directly to the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account (TSA), leaving the tribunal without access to the revenue generated.

“The money goes to the TSA directly; we are not in control of it,” he added.

Beyond cleaning and stationery, the tribunal’s expenditure profile for 2025 revealed significant outlays in other areas. It spent N29 million on local travel, transport and training, and N64 million on other local travel and transport-related costs.

Utility bills also featured prominently. Electricity charges were put at N981 million, while telephone charges amounted to N990 million. Internet access charges stood at N702 million.

In addition, N39 million was spent on plant and generator fuel costs, N3.4 million on maintenance of motor vehicles and transport equipment, and N9.5 million on local training.

The figures drew murmurs within the committee room, with lawmakers signalling plans for deeper scrutiny of the agency’s spending pattern.

The Senate panel stressed that as a key institution in Nigeria’s capital market dispute resolution framework, the IST must not only dispense justice efficiently but also reflect fiscal discipline in its operations.

Lawmakers warned that with many Nigerians facing rising living costs, public institutions must justify every kobo spent and demonstrate value for money in budget implementation.

The committee is expected to continue its review of the tribunal’s financial records as part of the broader examination of capital market agencies’ 2026 budget proposals.