2024 budget: Speaker Abbas bemoans failure of previous budgeting processes

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1 year ago

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, on Wednesday, called for enactment of the Budget Act in order to avoid the pitfalls that led to the failure of previous budgeting processes.

Hon. Abbas, who gave the charge after the presentation of the 2024 budget estimates by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the joint session of the National Assembly, expressed optimism that the legislation will strengthen the budget process and promote development outcomes.

While pledging National Assembly’s resolve to support the government’s policies and programmes targeted at alleviating poverty, economic restructuring and diversification, as well as general social sector reform and development, he observed that the decisions taken since inauguration on 29th May, 2023 “may be hard but necessary to remedy past errors and put Nigeria on the path of economic recovery, security and development.”

He however observed that “millions of our constituents are living through incredibly difficult times.”

Hence, he noted that Nigerians “also look to the Tinubu-led government to provide quick and sustainable solutions. The antecedents of the President and your track record in governance inspire a lot of hope in Nigerians.

“Mr. President, it is for this reason that we cannot afford to fail Nigerians. If anyone can change the rot and chart a new course for Nigeria, IT IS YOU! I have no doubt whatsoever that we can measure up to the expectations of Nigerians through your visionary leadership and the commitment of the National Assembly.

“Accordingly, the budget laid before us today should not be seen as a mere financial document but a reflection of our collective resolve to address the most critical needs of our long-suffering citizens. In order to promote economic growth and development, the 2024 Budget should prioritise social welfare programmes to help reduce poverty and inequality.

“Equally, important is job creation and youth empowerment in view of the large and ever-growing youth population. Failure to do this means failure to invest in our future.

“This Budget must also prioritise investment in education and healthcare, which is critical to human capital development and a more productive workforce. Infrastructure development is another critical area of importance, which is crucial for economic growth. The biggest challenge, however, is balancing these priorities within the constraints of available resources.

“In view of this and the related challenge of a high level of public debt, the National Assembly will ensure that the 2024 budget includes concrete strategies for sustainable debt management, including measures to increase revenue and control expenditure.

“Specifically, the focus should be on raising more revenue through tax reform, fiscal reform, subsidy reform, foreign exchange convergence, and centralised revenue collection. In our recent engagement with MDAs on the MTEF, we emphasised the need for revenue-generating agencies to double their targets to meet the N18 trillion revenue projected in the budget.

“Mr. President, the effectiveness and legitimacy of fiscal policies depend to a very large extent on public support. As the People’s House and in line with our Legislative Agenda, the House of Representatives will convene the first national citizens’ budget town hall to harness public input and opinion.

“We are convinced that this will increase transparency and accountability, improve policymaking, and increase trust in government. Public participation in the budgetary process has been shown to improve resource allocation and service delivery as well as a more stable and robust economy. By seeking input from citizens, we aim to understand their local needs and preferences better and allocate resources more effectively.

“Going forward, Mr. President, we will also work to institutionalise pre-budget engagement with the Executive to further improve and hasten the budget process. The House has already commenced interface with MDAs through the Sectoral Debates to understand the challenges facing government agencies and identify areas for legislative intervention.

“All of these efforts are geared towards ensuring that we provide the necessary legislative support to your administration’s renewed hope agenda.

“I cannot conclude my remarks without highlighting some of the perennial problems that have hampered the budget process in Nigeria. These are well known to Mr. President, who is an experienced ex-legislator. Although the government budget is an important tool for economic management and promoting growth and development, it has generally not met the expectations of improved service delivery and development.

“This has largely been due to challenges relating to budget enactment, budget implementation and budget oversight. The well-known gaps in the various stages of the budget process underscore the need for budget reforms, including altering relevant sections of the Constitution and existing laws to strengthen the budget process and transform our budget into an authentic tool for development.

“For this reason, I propose enacting a Budget Act to strengthen the budget process and promote development outcomes. This is a well-established practice in democracies across the world.”

While assuring that the 2024 budget proposal will give this bill the utmost priority it deserves, Speaker Abbas emphasized that the House will diligently scrutinise it alongside Nigerians to ensure that when it is passed, it will be a budget that best addresses the most critical needs of our people.

“Accordingly, we seek the cooperation of all heads of MDAs, especially during budget defense by Committees. We shall thoroughly examine various aspects of the budget proposals, including economic feasibility, allocation and utilisation of funds and sustainability of proposed fiscal policies.

“This is essential for maintaining checks and balances and ensuring that government spending aligns with national priorities and is conducted transparently and efficiently. Therefore, I urge all stakeholders to approach the deliberations on this budget with a sense of purpose and commitment to national development.”

The Speaker, who tasked his contemporaries on the need to proceed with the huge task ahead, averred that the “next couple of weeks will be tough and demanding for us. But I do not doubt our capacity to effectively and speedily discharge our constitutional mandate.

“We must ensure that the budget, when finally passed, meets the expectations of the people we represent. We must equally follow through the implementation process through our various oversight engagements.”

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