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Tag: 2017 Budget

  • 2017 Budget: You can’t play both legislative, executive functions, Sagay blasts NASS

    …Says NASS members sees public funds as their ‘share of national cake’

    The Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, PACAC, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), on Sunday, blasted the National Assembly for daring to combine their roles as legislators with that of the executive.

    Sagay queried the power of the National Assembly to insert projects into the budget.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, had, while signing the 2017 Budget into law last week, queried some “alterations” in the budget by the National Assembly.

    He said such alterations would affect the plans of the executive to execute the projects as designed from the beginning.

    However, Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, had, in turn, rejected Osinbajo’s position, stating that the legislative arm of government had the powers to alter the budget.

    Sagay, however, argued that the National Assembly had no power to introduce any project into the budget.

    Speaking in Abuja at a programme organised by the National Association of Seadogs (the Pyrates Confraternity), the PACAC chairman said the legislative arm of government should not cross its bounds.

    Sagay stated, “I am amused that the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House are saying that the acting President had no right to comment on this matter. They said they have all the powers.

    “The National Assembly has no power to create projects; it approves budgets. It is the government, the executive, that takes proposals for projects but this National Assembly does not get the message; it wants to be both legislature and executive at the same time.”

    He alleged that the National Assembly was largely to blame for the ineffectiveness of past budgets because the members placed their selfish interests ahead of the nation’s interest.

    The PACAC chairman added, “Even CNN reports that there are more private jets in Nigeria than commercial aircraft. The truth is that the overwhelming number of Nigerian elite see any funds voted or appropriated for any project as their share of the national cake.

    “The National Assembly itself sees the Nigerian national budget as its personal budget, its money to tinker with at will and then to leave something to the rest of us.

    “It is no surprise that Nigeria’s development remains stunted and misery and poverty remain overwhelming.”

    The House, however, insisted that it stood by its earlier position that the power of appropriation resided with the National Assembly.

    It also reminded Sagay that the acting President signed the budget into law, knowing that there were new projects inserted.

    The Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Abdulrazak Namdas, told newsmen that the comments coming from the executive on the budget were “unnecessary.”

    Namdas stated, “We gave our position on this matter already and keep repeating it. The power of the purse, in a presidential democracy, resides with the legislature and Nigeria will not be different.

    “The acting President signed this same budget into law after studying it for several days. He knew there were additional projects and he signed. We have a law in place. Is it after the law has come into effect that they turn around to question the powers of the National Assembly?”

    However, Namdas advised the executive to approach the judiciary for the interpretation of the 1999 Constitution if it was in doubt over any of its provisions.

    “They are the ones asking questions. Let them go to court,” he added.

     

  • We have powers to alter 2017 budget – Dogara fires back at Osinbajo

    …Says legislature won’t act as rubber stamp to executive

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Yakubu Dogara, on Thursday said that the National Assembly has powers to alter national budget according to the desire of the citizens.

    He stated this during plenary after Rep. Abubakar Lawal (APC- Adamawa) drew the attention of the lower chamber to Acting President Yemi Osinbajo’s remarks.

    Osinbajo’s was reported in the media to have said that the power of appropriation was vested with the executive.

    According to Dogara, it is left to the judiciary to interpret which arm of the government has the powers to alter the budget according to the Constitution.

    “This issue is left to the judiciary to interpret to us as to what arm of government has power to do what. For me, this is not an issue we should dwell so much on.

    “I don’t want to believe that the Acting President made that statement because when it comes to the budget, the power of the purse rests with the parliament.

    “The executive is just one man; every other person in the executive arm is answerable to the president alone. The relationship is that of master and servant, but for the parliament, it is that of equals.

    “Even, when the president hasn’t said anything, everyone is trying to read what the body language is; the basis of democracy is collaboration.

    “In the case of the budget, if the parliament disagrees with the executive, the worst that would happen is that they will refuse to sign the budget.

    “In that case, we can override the veto of the President and pass it into law.

    “The worse the Executive can say is that they will not implement. The question then will be, is that the law of the land? Anyone with honour, who is in the seat, should know the right thing to be done.

    “In case of the executive, everyone knows the consequence and I don’t want to mention it by its name.

    “This house is not going to be a rubber stamp to the executive arm.

    “In the United States where we borrowed our Constitution from, once the president walks into the chamber with the budget proposal, it becomes dead on arrival.

    “It is therefore what the parliament decides that brings it back to life.

    “The priority of the people may not be that of the executive. This kind of talk is not helpful, so we shouldn’t even take a debate on the issue,” Dogara said.

    Earlier, mover of the motion, Lawal, stated that the acting president’s speech had undermined the powers of the national assembly.

    “I read in the media where the acting president was quoted as saying that the national assembly does not have the powers to alter the country’s budget.

    “This will undermine the powers that sections 4, 5 and 9 of the Constitution have given the National Assembly, the power to make laws.

    “Order 12(19) spells out the procedure, so for someone to come out and say that we have no power, it’s a breach of our privilege,’’ he said.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Osibanjo had while signing the 2017 Appropriation Bill on Monday stated that the alteration of the budget by the national assembly had distorted the plans of the executive in implementing the 2017 budget.

     

     

     

     

  • 10 Things you need to know about newly signed 2017 budget

    Barely a few hours after receiving the nod from President Muhammadu Buhari, Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, yesterday, signed the 2017Appropriation Bill into law.

    Here are 10 things everyone should know about the 2017 Budget of recovery and growth as compiled by The Presidency:

    1. The 2017 Budget Preparation process was a much more efficient process than the 2016 process. There was also less acrimony regarding it, between the Executive and Legislature.

    2. The 2017 Budget was collated using — for the first time ever — a web-based application developed by the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF). Instead of the traditional method of hard copy submissions of budget proposals, Ministries, Departments and Agencies were asked to upload their proposals to the new budget preparation portal, resulting in a more efficient and transparent preparation process.

    3. More than 4,000 staff of the MDAs were specially trained to use the new application, across multiple locations nationwide. To support the deployment of the budget portal, the Budget Office set up a Helpdesk, accessible by telephone and email, for authorised users.

    4. President Buhari presented the 2017 Budget Speech to a Joint Session of the National Assembly on December 14, 2016.

    5. The National Assembly passed the Budget on May 11, 2017, five months after it was submitted by President Buhari.

    6. The next step, which should have been the signing of the Budget by the Executive, was delayed because of disagreements regarding some alterations the National Assembly made to the submitted document — for example the National Assembly reduced proposed budgets for a number of critical infrastructure projects (the standard gauge railway projects, the Mambilla Power Project, the Second Niger Bridge, the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway etc), and applied the difference to fund some new projects introduced by the legislators.

    7. What followed were four weeks of painstaking engagement between Executive and Legislature, to resolve the differences.

    8. The conclusion of the matter is that the funding deductions on those critical projects will all be restored during the course of the budget year. The leadership of the National Assembly has assured the Executive that this will be done.

    9. The Executive and the National Assembly have reached an agreement to return the Federal Government to a January–December budget calendar, starting from the 2018 budget. To ensure this happens the Executive has committed to submitting the 2018 budget to the National Assembly by October 2017, and on its part the Assembly has committed to passing the budget into law before the end of 2017.

    10. Budget Highlights:

    a. Total expenditure of N7.44 trillion, comprising N5.08 trillion in revenues and a projected deficit of N2.36 trillion which will largely be financed by borrowing.

    b. N2 trillion for capital expenditure (principally infrastructure).

    c. More than N500 billion for investments in roads, and power and housing projects

    d. N46 billion for Special Economic Zone Projects to be set up in each geopolitical zone.

  • 2017 Budget will deliver positive economic growth – Osinbajo

    Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, yesterday, signed the 2017Appropriation Bill into law.

    Osinbajo signed the budget at about 4:40 p.m. inside his conference room in the presence of the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Abba Kyari; Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; ministers and other top government officials, with the final figure of N 7.44 trillion presented by the National Assembly.

    The acting President, who described the budget signing as a milestone in the implementation of the economic and growth plan programme put in place by President Buhari in April, also noted that it had fewer errors than that of last year.

    He said: “A few minutes ago, I signed the 2017 Appropriations Bill into law. This is an important milestone in our economic recovery and growth plan laid in April by President Muhammadu Buhari. “I would like to express my appreciation to the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, as well as the entire leadership and members of the National Assembly for completing work on the 2017 Appropriation Bill.

    And I will return to this point presently. “The process of preparing and processing this Bill was much smoother than the 2016 Appropriation Bill. On the executive side, there were no allegations of errors, or mistakes, and there was a significant improvement in the quality of the preparation, as well as the presentation. “I wish to commend the Ministry of Budget and Planning for such a remarkable improvement over a single budget cycle.

    “On the side of the National Assembly, I wish to commend the collaborative spirit of the engagements our MDAs had with their various committees, and with the leadership, during the budget defence sessions. There were far fewer reported cases of acrimony, or hostile wrangling this year, than in the past. “From the reports we received, the sessions were generally conducted in a friendly atmosphere.

    There is no doubt that our democracy is maturing. “However, the final presentation and the signing of the budget has been considerably delayed. This was largely due to disagreements we had about the changes introduced to our 2017 budget proposals by the National Assembly.

    “The executive took the view that the changes fundamentally affected some of our priority programmes and would make implementation extremely difficult and in some cases impossible.

    “I am also pleased to mention that, in our discussions with the leadership of the National Assembly, we have jointly resolved to return to a predictable January to December fiscal year. “It is a particularly important development because this accords with the financial year of most private sector companies, underscoring the crucial relationship between government and the private sector.

    “Therefore, on the understanding that we will be submitting the 2018 budget to the National Assembly by October 2017, the leadership of the National Assembly has committed to working towards the passage of the 2018 budget into law before the end of 2017. I must, once more, express my appreciation to the leadership of the National Assembly, for the collaborative spirit in which these discussions were conducted.

    “The 2017 budget, which I have signed into law today, is christened “Budget of Economic Recovery and Growth” and reflects our commitment to ensure strong linkage between the medium-term Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, ERGP, recently launched by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, and the annual budgets.

    Economy signalling gradual recovery

    “It is designed to bring the Nigerian economy out of recession unto a path of sustainable and inclusive growth. The budget has a revenue projection of N5.08 trillion and an aggregate expenditure of N7.44 trillion.

    The projected fiscal deficit of N2.36 trillion is to be financed largely by borrowing. “As you are all aware, our economy is already signalling a gradual recovery as growth is headed towards positive territory. First quarter GDP, at -0.52% compares favourably with -2.06% in the first quarter of 2016. Inflation is declining – down to 17.24 per cent from 18.74 per cent as at May 2016. Our external reserves are now US$30.28 billion as at June 8, 2017 up from US$26.59 billion as at May 31, 2016. “We are also gradually instilling confidence in our exchange rate regime.

    This improvement in GDP growth and other macro-economic indicators is largely attributable to our strategic implementation of the 2016 Budget as well as stronger macroeconomic management and policy coordination. “I am confident that the 2017 budget will deliver positive economic growth and prosperity – one that is self-sustaining and inclusive. In this regard, the 2017 budget will be implemented in line with our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan.

    5 key execution priorities

    “Over the 2017-2020 plan period, we are focusing on five key execution priorities, namely: Stabilizing the macroeconomic environment; Agriculture and Food security;Energy sufficiency in power and petroleum products; Improved transportation infrastructure; and Industrialization through support for micro, small and medium-scale enterprises, MSMEs. “The 2017 budget includes provisions that reflect these priorities.

    To demonstrate our commitment to following through our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, the 2017 budget allocates over N2 trillion to capital expenditure, principally infrastructure.

    N200bn for transport infrastructure “For instance, we are committing over N200 billion to improve transport infrastructure such as roads and rail; over N500 billion for investments in works, power, and housing; and N46 billion for Special Economic Zone Projects to be set up in each geopolitical zone.

    “The signing of the budget today will trigger activities in the domestic economy, which will lead to job creation and more opportunities for employment, especially for our youths. And, as I indicated earlier, we will be returning to the National Assembly to seek upward adjustments by way of virements in relation to a number of critical projects which have received inadequate provision in the budget just passed by the National Assembly.

    “We acknowledge that government alone cannot achieve the overarching goal of delivering inclusive growth; that is why the 2017 budget provides a lot of opportunities for partnerships with the private sector.”

  • Buhari directs Osinbajo to sign 2017 budget

    President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, to go ahead and sign the 2017 Appropriation Bill into law.

    The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, disclosed this in a two-paragraph statement on Monday.

    Shehu said Buhari who is currently receiving medical attention in London, the United Kingdom believed that it was in the interest of the nation’s economy for Osinbajo to sign the document without further delay.

    He said Buhari’s directive was conveyed to the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udo Udoma, in a letter dated June 10.

    The statement read, “Following the receipt of a full brief on the 2017 Appropriation Bill as passed by the National Assembly, and to buttress the unity at the highest level of government, President Muhammadu Buhari has indicated that it is in the interest of the nation’s economy for the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, to sign the Appropriation Bill into law.

    “In a letter dated June 10, 2017, which he personally signed and addressed to the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, the President also said he was ‘pleased by the joint resolution that the Executive would submit next year’s budget proposals by October 2017 and the National Assembly will conclude the Appropriation process by December 2017, so that the country can return to a normal fiscal period from next year onwards.’”

    There have been speculations that Osinbajo might be delaying the signing of the budget to wait for Buhari’s return.

    The President left the country on May 7 for another round of medical treatment after sending a letter to the National Assembly as provided for in Section 145 of the nation’s constitution.

    He told the federal lawmakers that only his doctors would determine how long he would be away from the country.

    There were speculations last week that the 74-year-old Nigerian leader would return last weekend.

    The Presidency, however, said it had no such information.

  • I will soon sign 2017 budget into law – Osinbajo

    Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has hinted that the 2017 budget will soon be signed.

    He gave the hint in his nationwide broadcast commemorating the country’s Democracy Day and the second anniversary of the present administration on Monday.

    He said the implementation of the 2017 budget would help the ongoing economic recovery.
    Osinbajo had stated, “And the implementation of our 2017 budget, which will soon be signed into law, will bring added impetus to our ongoing economic recovery.”

    The National Assembly had penultimate Friday transmitted the details of the budget to Osinbajo.

  • 2017 Budget: Four per cent reduction in education allocation unacceptable, ASUU tells FG

    The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, has bemoaned the four per cent reduction in the 2017 budget allocation to education sector.

    He made the observation on Thursday in Abuja when he paid a courtesy call on the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Mr Ayuba Wabba.

    He said such reduction was capable of destroying the nation’s educational system.

    According to him, the decline in funding education from 11 per cent to eight per cent in 2015 will do the education system no good.

    “About six per cent was proposed in 2017; about four per cent was given at the end of the day.

    “The decline will also destroy the country because destroying the educational system of a nation means destroying the nation,’’ he said.

    He said education had been relegated to the background because political office holders, now own private universities at the detriment of government universities.

    “They build their own universities, and they do not care about government universities.

    “The moment they destroyed government universities, Nigeria will have none again, because everything has been privatised,” he said.

    According to him, the union has always engaged government on funding and provision of facilities to attract quality education that can bring development to the country.

    He said the political class hardly recognised the essence of scholarship and funding for the development of the system, adding that all they think about was for them to take away what belong to the people.

    Ogunyemi also called on Nigerians and Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to support the fight for proper funding of education sector.

    He, however, commended the assistance and intervention of the NLC during the six months strike.

    While receiving the ASUU president, the NLC president said education has played a major role in the development of the nation’s economy.

    He said it was sad that most of the leaders, who had benefited from free education, could not transfer same education to the children of the poor.

    According to him, large number of Nigerian youths has been denied quality education.

    According to him, this act is deliberate to push the children of the poor out of the growth of the nation’s economy, so that they can determine who runs the affairs of the nation.

    Wabba, however, urged the union to see that the battle was won, adding that the nation has more than enough policy and resources to make the education system better than what it used to be.

     

     

    NAN

  • 2017 Budget controversy: Buhari’s aide, Enang, retracts statement, says ‘Osinbajo can sign’

    2017 Budget controversy: Buhari’s aide, Enang, retracts statement, says ‘Osinbajo can sign’

    The Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters, (Senate) Ita Enang, has said Acting President Yemi Osinbajo “is now the president here” and will duly assent the 2017 budget.

    Enang stated this while speaking to State House correspondents, after the 2017 Budget was delivered to Osinbajo on Friday.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that his remarks were to clarify his initial statement that “Mr President will assent the budget”.

    “The budget as passed by the National Assembly has just been transmitted to the Acting President. I just delivered it,” Enang said.

    “Let me use this opportunity to clarify an issue. The Acting President has the power to assent to the budget and he will assent to it when the processes are completed.

    “The Acting President has the power to assent to the budget. In February, he assented to 7 or 8 bills. Those that he didn’t agree with, he wrote the Senate and House of Representatives that he had withheld his assent from them.

    “He has the power of the president to assent to it. But the assent to the Appropriation Bill will be after the completion of the standard operation process.

    “The bill has 30 days within which it will be assented to but the process can be completed within two or three days. So, it is not possible to say it will be assented to in so, so and so day or in two or three days.

    “It’s upon the completion of the process that it will be assented to by the president and the president here now is the acting president.”

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Enang had in an interview on Wednesday said President Muhammadu Buhari and not Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo will sign the 2017 Budget.

  • BREAKING: Acting President, Osinbajo receives 2017 Budget from NASS

    The Presidency on Friday confirmed the reception of the 2017 Budget from the National Assembly leadership.

    The Senior Special Assistant to the Acting President, Mr. Laolu Akande, confirmed this on his Twitter handle, @Akandeoj.

    He said the document was formally received in the office of the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, on Friday.

    Akande added that the bill is currently undergoing diligent consideration by the Executive arm of government.

    “2017 Budget -Appropriations bill now officially received in the Acting President’s office and undergoing very prompt and diligent consideration,” he wrote.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, had on Wednesday told reporters that upon receipt of the document, copies would be made available to ministers to compare what their ministries sent to the National Assembly and what was returned.

    He had told the reporters that a decision on who would sign the document between Osinbajo and President Muhammadu Buhari who is currently in London, the United Kingdom for medical consultation would be taken at the appropriate time.

    But Akande had stated that Osinbajo will sign the document once he is satisfied with what was transmitted back to the Executive from the National Assembly.

    However, in another twist, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang​ said the President and not the Acting President will assent the budget despite being on medical vacation.

  • Confusion in Presidency: ‘Buhari not Osinbajo will sign 2017 budget’

    Sequel to Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo’s spokesperson, Laolu Akande statement that his principal will sign the 2017 budget when it is transmitted and satisfactory to him (Osinbajo), Senior Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari on National Assembly matters, Senator Ita Enang​, has reacted saying that President Muhamma​​du Buhari, and not the Acting President will assent the budget despite being on medical vacation.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that Laolu Akande had early stated via Twitter: “Just so we are clear: when the time comes, everything is set, & he is satisfied, Ag. President Yemi Osinbajo will assent to the 2017 Budget.”

    ​However, ​in an interview with Channels TV​ also on Wednesday, Enang stated that the budget would be transmitted to President Buhari who will sign it and then transfer it to acting President, Yemi Osinbajo.

    He ​also ​confirmed that the Presidency received the budget on Wednesday afternoon.

    “The 2017 budget will be transmitted to Mr president and the President will assent to the budget.

    ​”​The acting President is in office and when the budget is transmitted, it will go through the processes and all those other questions will answer itself,” he said.

    TheNewsGuru.com recalls that Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed had earlier said there is no decision yet on who will assent to the 2017 budget.

    He said this Wednesday afternoon while addressing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting.

    Reacting to a question on whether the budget will be signed by Osinbajo or taken to Buhari in London, the minister said: “When it (the budget) is transmitted to the Presidency, that decision (on who to sign) will be taken‎.”

    Mohammed also stated that if there were any discrepancies in the budget presented and the one passed, the executive would report to Udoma for harmonization.

    Enang also said: “In respect on the budget, it was only this morning that the Minister of National Planning informed the council that the budget has been passed. He has not sent to us individually, copies of the passed budget.

    “We now need to look at it against what we sent, and if there is any discrepancies, we will report back to the Minister of Budget and National Planning on harmonization.”

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