The Senate on Wednesday halted the 2024 FCT Supplementary Budget of ₦98.5 billion over a lack of details on projected revenue and expenditure in the budget document presented to lawmakers.
Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele (APC-Ekiti), had presented the proposed estimate without a detailed breakdown of the expected revenue and expenditure.
Opeyemi, in his presentation, said the bill was read for the first time on May 15.
He said the FCT 2024 supplementary budget was to consolidate the magnitude and scope of ongoing projects simultaneously within the city centre and across six area councils.
This, he said, was to ensure the Renewed Hope Mantra for a befitting capital city for Nigeria and Nigerians was achieved accordingly.
Contributing, Sen. Ede Dafinone (APC-Delta) and Sen. Sani Musa (APC-Niger) raised concerns over the lack of details on the budget document presented to the lawmakers.
Musa especially said the budget document did not indicate how revenue was generated and utilised in the previous budget.
He said details of the budget performance of the previous budget were not also captured in the supplementary budget.
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, acknowledged the non-inclusion of the budget details.
However, when the budget was put to a voice vote, the “nays” were loudest, but Akpabio did not hit the gravel.
Opeyemi, thereafter, explained that the Chairman of the Senate Committee on FCT, Sen. Ibrahim Bomai, had details of the budget, but the details were not part of the lead debate that was given to him to present at plenary.
Following his explanation, the budget was slowed down to allow for provision of details going forward.
NAN
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