The House of Representatives is set to adopt stringent measures in reviewing the 2025 budget, with ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) failing to meet set standards at risk of losing funding.
This was disclosed by the Deputy Spokesperson of the House, Philip Agbese, on Tuesday while speaking with journalists.
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On 18 December, President Bola Tinubu presented a ₦49.74 trillion budget proposal to a joint session of the National Assembly.
The budget was subsequently passed for a second reading by in the House and the Senate.
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While the majority of lawmakers are still on holiday, the Committee on Appropriations has commenced work on the proposal.
On Monday, the committee met with other standing committees to agree on the modalities for passing the bill.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, Abubakar Bichi, held discussions with other committee chairmen as the defence of budget estimates commenced with the MDAs on Tuesday.
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Speaking on the new parameters, Mr Agbese said MDAs must demonstrate the implementation of the 2024 budget and outline their plans for the proposed budget. He added that the committees will be guided by these presentations.
“The leadership, through the committee, has set a very rigorous template that MDAs must meet before we approve any estimates.
“MDAs must show how much they have complied with the due process of law in implementing the previous budget, convince lawmakers about their understanding of the president’s vision in their areas of responsibility, and justify their capacity to spend Nigerian taxpayers’ money.
“Agencies that fail to meet our parameters as a parliament will have no allocation for capital projects in 2025. This is exactly why we are voted in by Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Agbese added that the House has identified critical sectors for intervention, including health, education, job creation, and the empowerment of youths and women.
“As a House, we have no other interest apart from our collective national interest. All we are interested in is the good of our country and fellow Nigerians. So, as we embark on this important exercise, we will look at critical sectors of the economy capable of stimulating economic growth and act accordingly,” he said.
Reps set timeline to conclude budget defence – Bichi
Meanwhile, Mr Bichi has said the House will conclude the budget defence exercise by 17 January, with the report scheduled for consideration by 31 January.
“From tomorrow to the 17th, we are going to conduct our budget defence, and we will likely harmonise on the 22nd. God willing, by the 31st, we are going to lay our reports.
ALSO READ: Senate may pass 2025 budget on 31 January
“We are going to study the budget. All our committees will study the budget. I believe the budget is for Nigerians, for our development — infrastructure and other important things. And I am sure Nigerians will be happy with it,” Mr Bichi said.
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