The Nigerian House of
Representatives said yesterday that the complaints by President Muhammadu
Buhari that some additions were made in the 2018 budget proposal submitted to
the National Assembly were justifiable.
However, the lawmakers
said they were not expected to rubber-stamp the Executive arm as any budgetary
proposal could be tinkered with.
House spokesman
Abdulrazak Namdas (APC, Adamawa) said in a statement that
the House was appreciative of Buhari’s decision to sign the
budget into law despite the complaints.
“We are on the same
page with Mr. President in his desire to return our budget cycle to
January-December. By the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007, the
budget estimates should be with the National Assembly around
September of the year.
“Going forward, we
urge the Executive to speed up the reporting time to the National Assembly by
complying fully with the FRA.”
On new projects introduced in
the budget, Namdas said: “We have to remind Mr. President that we are
representatives of our people and wish to state that even the common man deserves
a mention in the budget by including projects that will directly affect his
life positively.
“Some of the projects
designed by the executive, as high-sounding as their names suggest, do not meet
the needs of the common man.”
DailyTrust
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