The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria has said that it is not in a position to investigate or sanction the suspended Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris, over his alleged involvement in an N80 billion sleaze.
News gathered from the Website of The Nigeria Lawyers states that the reason is because Idris is not a member of ICAN.
ICAN stated this in a statement on Monday while responding to a letter written by the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA).
HEDA had requested ICAN to investigate and sanction Idris who is currently being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
HEDA had requested ICAN that Ahmed be handed over to the institute’s Disciplinary Tribunal for thorough investigation and sanction.
In his reponse, Registrar/Chief Executive Officer of ICAN, Prof Ahmed Kumshe, said that the Institute cannot sanction Ahmed because he was not a member of ICAN.
In his words, “The attention of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria has been drawn to some publications in the media where a group known as Human & Environmental Development Agenda is asking ICAN to investigate and sanction the erstwhile Accountant-General of the Federation being probed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for corruption.
“We wish to inform the organisation and the general public that the former Accountant-General, Alhaji Ahmed Idris, is not a member of ICAN and therefore cannot be investigated and sanctioned by ICAN.
“Our act only allows us to regulate and discipline our members when they err at our Investigating Panel or Disciplinary Tribunal as the case may be.”
The AGF was suspended by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, 3 days after his arrest to allow for a seamless investigation.
The Federal Government has since replaced Ahmed Idris with Anamekwe Nwabuoku to oversee the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation in the interim.
EFCC has however, released Idris on bail pending further investigations.
A former Governor of Zamfara State, Abdul’Aziz Yari, has also been arrested over the alleged scam.
The Accountant-General of the Federation is the administrative head of the treasury of Nigeria.
He has responsibility for managing receipts and payments of the country.
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