Besides, the Joint Appropriations Committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives will lay their report on the estimates of the money Bill as reworked today before plenaries of both chambers, a member of the Committee in the Senate, Suleiman Nazif (APC, Bauchi North) said.
In a chat with a few journalists after Wednesday’s sitting, Ndume said: “Quote me, the 2016 budget will be passed on Tuesday.”
On his part, Nazif at a joint press briefing with Sen. Abdullahi Sabi (APC, Niger), said: “Our laying of the budget tomorrow is as good as passing the budget. We want to give Nigerians the assurance that we will pass a budget that is acceptable and implementable. We’ll ensure that jobs will be created and various sectors will begin to have life. We are laying the budget tomorrow and when we lay the budget tomorrow every other thing is administrative. The budget will be laid by the chairman of the Appropriations Committee (Sen. Danjuma Goje).”
This will finally lay to rest the controversy that has trailed the presentation of two sets of budgets by the executive to the Senate.
Addressing journalists at the National Assembly yesterday after plenary, Senate spokesman, Sen Sabi Abdullahi, said all is set for the laying of the budget, adding that the Senate has worked hard to ensure a timely passage of the budget.
Sabi said: “All is almost set for the laying of the 2016 budget tomorrow (Thursday) in the Senate chamber as we have promised Nigerians; and with that, one or two processes that are required will take place and we will have our budget as promised. This has put to rest any suspicion of what is happening. I am here to inform you that tomorrow, March 17, God sparing our lives, the 2016 budget would be laid by the chairman of the Appropriation Committee.
“We are laying the budget tomorrow (today); that means that every little work that needed to be done with respect to getting that budget as an appropriation has been done. Literally, passing the budget tomorrow means that beyond laying it, we will discuss it, by taking it clause by clause and give it the loud voice that would proclaim its passage.
“When a target is set, it is to allow you to work very hard to achieve the target. By virtue of the fact that the budget would be laid tomorrow (today), it shows that we had worked so hard to get to that point. The rest – after laying the budget – is merely administrative.
“As far as we are concerned, in line with the legislative procedure, by laying the budget tomorrow, it is as good as we have passed the budget. What remains is for us to go to through one or two things as a procedure. We have done very well by ensuring that the budget would be laid tomorrow (today). There are lots of back and forth with respect to the budget. We are not unmindful about the date set for the passage, but we want to give Nigerians a budget that is acceptable, implementable, and that will actually drive the key policies of this government with respect to the change agenda.
“For the budget to be laid tomorrow, that means that there is concurrence – all members of the appropriation committee are satisfied; everybody that has a responsibility, every member of the committee has appended his signature on the budget and by tomorrow (today) when the budget is laid, Nigerians will know that we have done well.”
Sabi described the 2016 budget as implementable and said it will create jobs and boost the economy.
