Nigeria Senator Condemns 2017 Budget, Says Budget Lacks Details

The Nigeria cabinates of senators yesterday pin-pointed holes in the 2017 Appropriation Bill submitted to both chambers of the National Assembly for consideration and approval.
While majority of the senators, who made their submissions at the floor of the Senate, pointed out that the proposed appropriation bill lacked details and also complained of the poor performance of the 2016 budget by the executive.

Former Senate leader, Mohammed Ali Ndume, faulted the 2017 Appropriation Bill, describing it as lacking relevant details.

Ndume, who represents Borno South in the upper chamber, said the senators were not privy to the details of the 2017 budget, describing the situation as worrisome and an obstacle to government’s plan to execute developmental projects in the country.

The former Senate leader, who had earlier raised Order 15 Standing Rules of the Senate to protest the delay by the presiding officer, the Senate president, in recognising him to speak, picked holes in the general budget performance, especially as it concerns the humanitarian crisis in the North East.

The lawmaker had urged the Senate Committee on Appropriation to increase the budgetary allocation to crisis in the North East from N42 billion to N100 billion in order to address the grave humanitarian challenges in the area.

Ndume said: “The budget we have been passing in the past years lacked one important ingredient, which is details. Some of us are ignorant and innocent. The 2017 budget has no details. That is why we continue to have abandoned projects in the country. We, as senators, don’t have the details of the budget.

“For the humanitarian crisis in the North East, my colleagues will not be tired to hear my voice. I urge the appropriation committee to allocate a reasonable sum to the humanitarian crisis in the North East from N45 billion to N100 billion.”

Full story at - Leadership NG