Why TSA must not fail

So I was sharing with my followers on twitter some few nights ago how I experienced TSA in reality.

It happened on a very hot Tuesday afternoon when I was stopped by officers of the Federal Road Safety Commission while driving on a street in Lagos without my seat belt. Immediately I was stopped, I knew the offence I committed already and wasted no time in complying by handing over my Driver’s Licence to them as requested.

Despite my plea of rushing to make an important appointment, I was issued an offence ticket on the spot and given a code they called RRR, whatever that means, to go pay the sum of 2,000 Naira at the bank and come back for my Licence. See ehn… This country is already moving forward, I was fascinated by the way technology is supporting and improving the operations of the FRSC; on-spot ticketing.

Not to elongate the story, I went straight to the closest bank to make the payment, where I was directed to a teller in charge of TSA payments and returned to the FRSC office for my Driver’s Licence.

Before now, such payments would have gone into a private account. Especially in a case like mine, where I could have settled my way out of it, in the first place.

The last time anyone heard anything major about Treasury Single Account (TSA) of the Federal Government of Nigeria was when President Buhari in his commemorative Democracy Day speech said Government had boldly implemented it and by so doing is “stopping the leakages in public expenditure.” The other major time TSA gained public attention was in a controversial allegation made concerning it on the floor of red chambers of the National Assembly. That allegation has however now been proven as untrue, by the Senate itself!

However, despite the media attention and snippet mentions of TSA, many Nigerians remain in the dark about this major account of the federal government, into which all income of the federal government accrue and from which all government spending are carried out. Many are unaware that the continued success of TSA holds the key to positive transformation of their lives and the country in general. It is even sad to realise that most Nigerians do not know that this government account is under threat of failing because of the federal government’s non-payment of more than 16 months agreed collection fees to the providers of the services that powers the scheme.

One of the challenges that have bedevilled Nigeria over the years and hindered her from attaining her potentials is endemic corruption, which has almost become second nature – even in official circles! Riding one of his campaign promises, which is to bring an end—or at best, reduce it to an inconsequential level—to corruption, President Mohammadu Buhari had instructed the implementation of TSA across all federal government agencies. By so doing, with the instrumentality of the TSA, the federal government has been able to reduce corruption in the public and civil services. This is so because details of funds kept within the TSA can be accessed by each agency that holds a TSA account, as well as the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and the Ministry of Finance. And no spending can be made out the purview of government. Similarly, all income into government’s account paid to any Ministry, Department or Agency of the federal government can be tracked with precise details, such as payer, purpose, time, place, etc of payment, right from the point of payment.

It is obvious that the 2016 budget is a budget of the people. Some analysts already consider it to be daring especially at such a time as this, when many nations are experiencing tough times. Such people’s position is even fortified by the current weak (howbeit surging) state of the Naira, among many other factors. However, it does appear that this government is right in its convictions that the best time to “plant” is during a “famine”; hence the audacious budget, the highest in the history of Nigeria. But all that is planned may well go down the drain.

Not too long ago, President Muhammadu Buhari launched social intervention programmes, which he described as “by far the most ambitious social protection programme in our history.” The programme is aimed at reducing poverty to the barest minimum and “creating the opportunity for people to fend for themselves.” This programme would reach all segments of the nation – young and old, educated or not.

The only funding conduit of all projects of this government is the Treasury Single Account, through which all accounts of the federal government can be viewed on one consolidated screen. The success of these programmes is dependent on the continued implementation of TSA; and any damage done to TSA is a damage done to all these beautiful projects. Hence, all Nigerians must ensure the success of TSA if we want posterity to speak well of us, especially as our future is also in the plans of Government. One must not forget to mention that all these would create ripple effect on the economy, especially as it concerns employment and preparation of our young jewels for a future that surpasses our present and past.

The 2016 Appropriation Act did not become a law until May 2016, five months into the year. Time is short, yet of essence. At this crucial period in the annals of our history, we cannot afford to have slack of any sort. The slacks of the past are enough for a lifetime! All agencies of Government have to maximally deliver all programmes of government and must be properly monitored to be doing so. With TSA, Government can achieve this, without going through the usual hassles of requesting and flipping through banks statements.

Through the single consolidated account, the performances of all government agencies, in line with the strategic programmes of government, can be monitored to ensure that every agency of government lives up to its responsibilities. And when lagging agencies are discovered, the exact areas of non-performance are identified and consequently remedied. It is good to also note that, through this account, government can know how much each of its agencies has in its account and the total fund summation in all of Government’s account, per time, without going to the bank – only by the click of a button.

Above all, one must reinstate that TSA is about the present, but beyond it. Whilst providing government an authoritative foothold of its finance, government is able to plan for the future based how much it has in its accounts and its expected income. With this, the present government can correct mistakes of the past and generally better the lot of every Nigerian.