Fortifying Public Funds

Bayo Sodade’s latest work, The Financial Control in The Nigerian Public Service (second edition) has invariably brought to the fore the role of financial management in the Nigerian public sector. Added to this is the significance of the rules guiding procurement as well as auditing and accountability. At the same time, this piece gives an adequate insight into the operations of the public sector.

In a quick overview, Sodade’s book encapsulates numerous vital issues bordering on the framework of Nigerian public finance, economic planning and budgeting, public sector procurement, accounting for revenue and expenditure, authorisation of expenditure, classification and control of expenditure, payment procedures in government, loss or shortage in government funds, auditing, accountability, pension reform and fiscal federalism in Nigeria.

The book which the author and Permanent Secretary in the Lagos State Ministry of Budget and Planning, dedicates to Lagos State Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), “for daring to fan the embers of hope,” takes into cognisance the laws and regulatory frameworks for government funds and property as documented in the Nigerian Constitution, Finance Act of 1958 (As Amended), The Fiscal Responsibility Act, the Public Procurement Act, the Audit Act, amongst others; while expatiating on debt management, state budget process, transparency, accountability, budgeting and budgetary control, National Economic and Empowerment Development Strategy, (NEEDS); Millennium Development Goals, (MDGs); the Lagos State Ten-Point Agenda, the Vision 20:2020, tendering procedure in government, Due Process and economic empowerment.

Explicitly using graphics to drive home his points in several chapters of the book, Sodade conveys to the readers his broad understanding of the Nigerian public sector’s financial planning, while showcasing his wealth of experience garnered in his 31 years in the Civil Service.

Having worked in various capacities as the Secretary of the Public Accounts Committee and the State Tenders Board; Head of Planning Directorate of the Governor’s Office and Director of Budget, before attaining his present position, Sodade has been involved in the financial mechanism of the state and that is reflected in the depth knowledge and research that had been vested in the making of this book.

It can be said that this publication is a rare exception as not many intellectually-researched books have been written on the public sector by its practitioners.

An avid reader would have a clear understanding of the operations of the public sector, in regard to economic planning and budgeting, as Sodade broadly discusses each topic with the sole objective of imparting knowledge, while using practical case studies, with questions and answers on each chapter for clearer understanding by the readers.

Worthy of note is his submission on the concept of accountability. He wrote, “In the Public Service, accountability is synonymous with stewardship. This involves the rendition of an account by Public officers of fund and properties entrusted by citizens. The philosophy of accountability emanates from the fact that Public Officers are authorized to collect, keep and utilise public funds for specified public purposes. Central to the concept of accountability is Financial Control.”

The author also highlights anticorruption efforts in Nigeria and some of the adopted instruments, while also making reference to the role of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC).

He noted that the Pension Reform Act of 2004 “was brought about by agitations on the need to correct the imbalances and distortions that characterized the previously adopted pension system which was further exacerbated by galloping inflation and widely fluctuating fortune engendered by Nigeria’s mono-cultural dependency on the petroleum sector.”

The book proves to be highly instructive as Sodade exploits his vast experience in defining issues which are highly critical and crucial to new vista of understanding in financial management. The book would be advantageous to the readers, most