Relevant committees of the House of Representatives have been mandated to liaise with Ministry of Budget and National Planning and the Ministry of Finance to urgently correct some irreconcilable differences in figures presented in the 2019 Appropriation Bill if the second reading must continue on Thursday.
The Speaker, Hon.Yakubu Dogara, who gave the directive on Wednesday after the duo of Hon. Adamu Chika representing Shiroro/ Rafi/Munya of Niger State and Hon. Ahman-Pategi representing Edu/Moro/Pategi Federal Constituency of Kwara State picked holes in the 2019 budget, said the ministries must present an error-free document Thursday to enable lawmakers continue work on the document.
Chika and Ahman-Pategi had noted that the appropriation bill is fraught with many errors in figures.
Dogara, who has continuously implored his colleagues to expedite action on the budget, however said the second reading of the budget could proceed in spite of the apparent flaws, adding that the Wednesday debate should merely look at the general principles of the budget.
“Even though it is apparent on the surface of the budget that there are so many irreconcilable differences in the figures allotted, basically we are discussing the general principles of the budget by virtues of the provisions of our rules at this time. So, we would talk about general principles at this time.
“I am sure we are not concluding the debate today. I will direct relevant committee chairmen to liaise with the Ministry of Finance, Budget and Planning, to ensure that by tomorrow, before we conclude the debate on the budget, to make sure that we have the reconciled figures.
“So, for today, I want to admonish and plead with us to make sure that we confine ourselves to the general principles of the budget. I am by this announcement drawing the attention of the Ministry of Budget and Planning and Finance to the irreconcilable differences in the figures allotted in the budget and unfailingly, by tomorrow, if we must continue the debate on the budget, they must give us reconciled figures.”
When he pointed out some of the discrepancies in some of the figures, Hon. Chika stated that: “I want to raise some issues, particularly some errors I noticed in the national budget. As everyone knew, the schedule in the budget consists of part A, which is the statutory transfers and part B, which is the debt servicing, part C, which is the recurrent expenditure and part D, which is the capital expenditure.
“I will raise some issues, which have to do, one, with the Ministry of Education, two, Ministry of Finance and three, Ministry of Budget and National Planning and then, one observation with the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
“When you go to the education ministry, in part C, which is the recurrent expenditure, which consist both the personnel and overhead, you will realize that the budget is N462.2bn, but when you go to the summary of the budget by the MDAs, number 41: 0.5.1.8 personnel now have changed to about N539.6bn and overhead, there is N33.5bm now making it that the total recurrent expenditure when you go by the summary by the MDAs has changed to N539bn. I don’t know why that figure was added at that level."
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