Amidst 'Padding Scandal', PDP calls for reform of entire budgetary process
Tue Aug 02, 2016 10:45:am Politics
1.9K By Buchi Obichie
Reacting to allegations and counter-allegations by former House Committee Chairman, Abdulmumin Jibrin and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, on the alleged padding of the 2016 budget, the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has called for a reform of the entire budgetary process.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by the Director, New Media, Deji Adeyanju, the PDP said the entire "budget process has been a fiasco," and that the various allegations had called into question, the integrity of the budget.
The PDP also accussed the President's Ministers and aides of also "padding" the budget.
The statement read in part: "It is imperative to point out that at the onset President Buhari proposed a N6.08tr budget. This is the same figure as the budget passed by NASS.
"On the surface, this fact looks innocuous but is the foundation upon which the entire sham is founded.
"It is also worthy to note that reviews carried out by many Nigerians indicate that the budget as presented by the President was full of inflated figures & frivolous allocations.
"The Presidency then raised an alarm about insertions into the budget at the National Assembly.
"The Presidency further stated that Mr. President would not sign the budget until "it was cleaned up". You will recall that this caused further delay in Mr President assenting to the budget. This whole sham begs many questions:
"Is this the cleaned up version about which Hon. Jibrin speaks? Why is Hon. Jibrin only just speaking now after being relieved of his post as Chairman of the Appropriations Committee? Would he have spoken up if he had not been relieved?
"Was Mr. President aware of that the budget he presented to NASS was "padded" by his ministers & presidential aides as Hon. Jibrin alleged in his interviews? How did the Presidency miss these "insertions" at NASS despite engaging in a clean up? Or did the Presidency allow them remain?
Are "insertions" into the budget by members of NASS illegal or do they constitute part of the oversight powers granted to legislators by the Constitution? Should members of NASS be allowed to make "insertions" into the budget? These & other questions require answers.
"It is more than a little depressing that as at today, we are still debating the integrity of Budget 2016 and not the percentages of performance.
"In 30 days, the APC-led FG is required by the Fiscal Responsibility Act to submit the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, for the 2017 budget and the APC led NASS is required to commence the process of approving it.
"In the light of the current circumstance, we are hard pressed to see how this requirement will be fulfilled within the time frame required by law.
"Above all, we must realize that this presents an opportunity to reform the budgeting process to ensure that such a charade never occurs again.
"Hopefully, the APC will soon put its in-house squabbles behind it & pay attention to the task for which it was elected governance."
In a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by the Director, New Media, Deji Adeyanju, the PDP said the entire "budget process has been a fiasco," and that the various allegations had called into question, the integrity of the budget.
The PDP also accussed the President's Ministers and aides of also "padding" the budget.
The statement read in part: "It is imperative to point out that at the onset President Buhari proposed a N6.08tr budget. This is the same figure as the budget passed by NASS.
"On the surface, this fact looks innocuous but is the foundation upon which the entire sham is founded.
"It is also worthy to note that reviews carried out by many Nigerians indicate that the budget as presented by the President was full of inflated figures & frivolous allocations.
"The Presidency then raised an alarm about insertions into the budget at the National Assembly.
"The Presidency further stated that Mr. President would not sign the budget until "it was cleaned up". You will recall that this caused further delay in Mr President assenting to the budget. This whole sham begs many questions:
"Is this the cleaned up version about which Hon. Jibrin speaks? Why is Hon. Jibrin only just speaking now after being relieved of his post as Chairman of the Appropriations Committee? Would he have spoken up if he had not been relieved?
"Was Mr. President aware of that the budget he presented to NASS was "padded" by his ministers & presidential aides as Hon. Jibrin alleged in his interviews? How did the Presidency miss these "insertions" at NASS despite engaging in a clean up? Or did the Presidency allow them remain?
Are "insertions" into the budget by members of NASS illegal or do they constitute part of the oversight powers granted to legislators by the Constitution? Should members of NASS be allowed to make "insertions" into the budget? These & other questions require answers.
"It is more than a little depressing that as at today, we are still debating the integrity of Budget 2016 and not the percentages of performance.
"In 30 days, the APC-led FG is required by the Fiscal Responsibility Act to submit the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, for the 2017 budget and the APC led NASS is required to commence the process of approving it.
"In the light of the current circumstance, we are hard pressed to see how this requirement will be fulfilled within the time frame required by law.
"Above all, we must realize that this presents an opportunity to reform the budgeting process to ensure that such a charade never occurs again.
"Hopefully, the APC will soon put its in-house squabbles behind it & pay attention to the task for which it was elected governance."
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