Buhari presents FCT, NDDC budgets to Reps
The President, Muhammadu Buhari, has presented to the House of Representatives proposed budgets for the Federal Capital Territory and the Niger Delta Development Commission for consideration and approval.
The Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, read the communications from the President to members at the plenary on Monday.
The NDDC’s 2021 and 2022, alongside the FCT’s 2022 budgets are getting to the federal parliament two months to the end of the year.
They were transmitted at a time when the House Committee on Public Accounts has commended investigation of no fewer than 63 institutions of the Federal Government for implementing illegal budgets.
According to sources on Monday, the committee wrote a letter to the Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation, Ben Akabueze, to demand evidence of appropriation by the National Assembly, of the expenditures made by the departments, agencies, institutes, corporations and parastatals.
However, Buhari, while laying the 2023 Appropriation Bill before a joint session of the National Assembly on October 7, 2022, slammed committees of the parliament who were bypassing him and approving budgets for Government-Owned Enterprises without his approval.
The President is expected to transmit budgetary proposals of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies to the National Assembly, while the Clerk transmits passed budgets to the Presidency for implementation.