Senate to make final consideration of 2020 revised budget Thursday

Senate

Barring any last minute changes, the Senate will on Thursday consider the revised 2020 appropriation bill and pass it for concurrence with the House of Representatives ahead of assent by the President.

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, said this at Wednesday plenary while making his remark after the Committee on Appropriation laid the report on the 2020 revised budget.

“Tomorrow, we can receive and consider the report to ensure that we don’t delay anything as important as that. So, this is the essence of altering the order paper,” Lawan said.

Recall that Senate, on Tuesday, deferred presentation of the report over a delay by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, to provide details for the sum of N186 billion, an amount which is part of the N500 billion COVID-19 intervention fund.

Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Barau Jibrin, on Tuesday, had explained to his colleagues that the Finance Ministry was yet to comply with the request of the Committee by attaching necessary details for the amount to be captured as part of the 2020 budget amendment bill.

ALSO READ: I remain APC chairman for Bauchi ― Uba Nana declares

However, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, on Wednesday disclosed that the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning had complied with the request of the Appropriations Committee by providing the relevant details for the outstanding N186 billion.

The development, according to him, makes it expedient for the upper chamber to consider the revised 2020 budget on Thursday during plenary.

Lawan had on Wednesday said, “Those responsible for the budget documents and expected letter to do the needful without further delay. They need to be meticulous and responsible.

“The National Assembly cannot be a destination where the lack of efficiency on somebody’s job would be entertained.

“If we put figures without documents, they will accuse us of padding. We must have the documents printed today unfailingly, lay it tomorrow and give it final consideration on Thursday,” he stated.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

Paul Omorogbe