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The Ministry of Budget And Planning has come out with its position on the controversies surrounding the 2016 budget.
The ministry in a statement said the President is yet to take a
position on the budget after receiving the budget details from the
National Assembly on April 7.
On the controversial Calabar-Lagos rail project, the ministry
confirmed that there were indeed some errors in the initial budget
proposal sent to the National Assembly by the President in December.
The statement, however, added that the errors were corrected,
submitted and subsequently accepted by the relevant committees of the
National Assembly.
The statement read in part, “It must be emphasized that the two rail
projects are part of those for which the President is currently
negotiating funding with the Chinese government.
“The 60billion Naira provided in the budget for the Lagos – Kano and
Calabar – Lagos rail lines, respectively, is counterpart funding, to
support the Chinese financing for the projects.
“These projects are part of the strategic implementation plan of the
government which was disclosed by the Minister of Budget and National
Planning at The National Economic Council retreat in March 2016, in the
presence of state governors.”
The statement added that it was the corrected version that was
defended by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and his team.
Mischief
It has been a tug of war between the executive and the legislature
over the 2016 budget, as the National Assembly insists that the
Lagos-Calabar rail project was excluded from the budget.
At a news conference in Abuja, spokesman of the House of
Representatives, Abdulrazak Namdas, insisted that there was no project
as to Lagos-Calabar rail in the 2016 appropriation bill presented by
President Buhari to the National Assembly.
He criticised the late presentation of the project by Minister of Transport, Mr Chibuike Amaechi.
Also, in a strongly worded press statement, the spokesperson of the
Senate, accused the Presidency of setting Nigerians against the National
Assembly.
He accused the Minister of Transport of mischief and demanded an
apology from him if he is not able to show evidence that the
Lagos-Calabar rail project was included in the budget, otherwise he
should resign forthwith.
In another development, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land
Transport, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, confirmed that although the
Lagos-Calabar rail project was not in the original document presented to
the National Assembly by the executive, the Minister of Transport later
informed the Transport Committee of the omission and sent a
complimentary copy of the Ministry’s budget to the committee with the
inclusion of the Lagos-Calabar rail project.
Supplementary budget
In the meantime, the Senate is asking the executive to include the disputed Lagos Calabar Rail project in a supplementary budget and forward it to the National Assembly.
Briefing journalists in Abuja, Senate Spokesman Aliyu Abubakar said the Senate is ready and willing to consider a supplementary budget from the executive which would include the rail project.
Supplementary budget
In the meantime, the Senate is asking the executive to include the disputed Lagos Calabar Rail project in a supplementary budget and forward it to the National Assembly.
Briefing journalists in Abuja, Senate Spokesman Aliyu Abubakar said the Senate is ready and willing to consider a supplementary budget from the executive which would include the rail project.
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PLEASE BE POLITE