The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, Suleiman Bogoro, has said that TETFund’s budget does not come from the nation’s annual budgets.
Mr Bogoro said this on Wednesday while addressing education correspondents in Abuja.
The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, NEITI, had said that TETFund received N993.3billion from the Federation Account between 2012 and 2016 but “does not have a comprehensive accounting and operational manual.”
But Mr Bogoro described the report as “malicious, false and a deliberate attempt by detractors to pull down the cooperate image of TETFund.“
According to him, the 1992 negotiation of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) proposed that the trust fund bill should not be subjected to nation’s annual budgetary system.
“I want to say here, go to the laws of TETFund and its website, TETFund budget does not come from the federation account.
“ASUU made sure in the negotiation, which has remained a very important element of the agreement, that the trust fund bill proposed should not be subjected to annual and traditional budgetary system.
“Our budget is prepared by the management and as chief executive, I take it to the Board of Trustee members and seek their recommendations to the President through the Minister of Education.“
Mr Bogoro said that the agency derived its funds from the two per cent accessible tax of profit making entities in Nigeria.
“This is very important for you to know. If you do not have information about issues, seek clarifications so as not to misinform the public,“ Mr Bogoro said.
The TETFund boss, who said, he would remain focused in carrying out his mandate assured that he would continue to run a transparent and open-door policy.
“I have always opened up, you are aware that only recently, I inaugurated a Technical Advisory Committee on Impact Assessment (TACIA) to undertake and produce the strategic plan for the fund.
“The committee is made up of 100 per cent none second-staff because I have nothing to hide and I directed all my staff to open up to the books to them.
“If you want to find out whether we have financial procedure guidelines or anything about the FUND, we will direct you to the relevant departments.
“It is very painful and it reminds me when some persons choose to do things that tell me we cannot get it right in our own country.
“I am too focused to be distracted by speculations aimed at pulling down the corporate image of this organisation,” Mr Bogoro said.
NAN
