Buhari Gives MDAs Till Friday To Defend 2018 Budget Before NASS

In a bid to fast-track the passage of the 2018 Appropriation Bill, President Muhammadu Buhari has given Ministries, Department and Agencies till Friday to submit details of their budget estimate to the National Assembly

The directive was conveyed in a circular signed by Lawrence Ojabo, Director of Information in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Ojabo said the SGF, Boss Mustapha, enjoined supervising ministers to ensure timely compliance with the content of the circular.

The circular also directed the agencies to comply with the provisions of the law in section 21 of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) 2007.

The FRA 2007 provides that consequent upon laying of the summary of budget estimate of agencies listed in the schedule to the FRA alongside the budget by Mr President, it is required that details of such budgets are made available to the national assembly for consideration and passage.

The directive comes five days after the President met with the leadership of the National Assembly at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Recall that Mustapha had last week, shortly after the President’s meeting with the leadership of the National Assembly, said Mr Buhari wants the 2018 Budget passed on time as we are approaching election year.
“Mr President has given instructions that all ministries and parastatals should ensure that they appear before the national assembly to defend their submissions so that we can get this out of the way,” he had said.

“This is a very dynamic year, there are preparations for elections and we are having quite a number of security challenges. And so if we do not appropriate, where will the money come from to be able to prosecute some of the assignments the federal government has in the appropriation of 2018.

“So this is a very good meeting; we intend to build on it. It is a confidence-building mechanism and it is an interface that would definitely get a new dimension of the governance of this country for the betterment of the people of Nigeria.”