Inaugurating the committee x, the Honourable Minister lamented that despite the obvious revenue strength of the lottery sector, the accruable returns to the Federal Government reserves have been very abysmal.
The committee is headed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. William Alo with a mandate to recover all unremitted funds to the Federal Government coffers within two months.
The Minister in admonition, charged them to apply all their energies to this noble task and to concentrate their surveillance, search and recovery efforts on the sector from 2015 till date.
“Today I am inaugurating a Special Ministerial Committee to be chaired by the Permanent Secretary on the Recovery of Unpaid Revenues from Lottery Operators and Permit Holders in Nigeria from 2015.
“The terms of reference is expressly stated in the appointment letters forwarded to the designated task force members and it is expected that the task force shall complete its work within the next 2 months.
“Since my assumption of office at the Ministry, I have had ample opportunity to consult with industry stakeholders. I have been less than satisfied with my findings.
“It is clear that historic revenues collections from lottery and gaming transactions have underperformed resulting in significant losses to the federal government.
“Despite my earlier appeal for increased efforts by operators to pay what they owe, statutory returns continue to be poor or nonexistent. Given our current economic climate, definitive measures must be taken.
“In this regard, I hereby inaugurate this Ministerial Task Force and charge them to determine what funds are owed to government from 2015 to 2020 and facilitate their immediate recovery of such funds to government coffers,” the minister said
Members of the task force committee drawn from the ministry,lottery agencies and financial security agencies include:
1. William Alo, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs (FMSDIGA), Chairman.
2. Lanre Gbajabiamila, Director-General, National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC).
3. Bello Maigari, Executive Secretary, National Lottery Trust Fund (NLTF);
4. Okechukwu Odunna, Director Enforcement, NLRC
5. Dr. Stella Maduka, Director, Parastatals,FMSDIGA.
6. Simon Tyungu, Deputy Director, Office of the Honourable Minister
7. Representatives of CBN, EFCC and the Nigeria Police Force.
8. Jude Ughwujabo, Technical Assistant to the Honourable Minister,Lottery Matters.