Nigeria is currently facing one of its most embarrassing moment since the advent of democracy in 1999. The controversial 2016 Budget of N6.07 trillion which was presented, changed and then returned is now completely in shambles following its review since it was fully published online.
Nigerians have poured through this budget and have seen figures beyond human comprehension. From budgeting rent for offices in Aso Rock to budgeting N3.2billion for a hospital in Aso Rock to budgets for books for the Vice President that is more than the entire budgets for books for the Ministry of Education, the entire budget is an apparent disaster and a mess that has embarrassed this government and the country in general.
The Ministry of Budget and National Planning has on Tuesday admitted that there were errors in the 2016 Budget and is blaming the development on the adoption of the Zero-Based Budgeting System. Here is an excerpt of a statement made to the media as reported by the Punch.
“The proposals have received general commendation. However, the details were developed using the Zero-Based Budget and is a new concept to our Budget Officers away from our traditional envelop process.
“The members of staff in the Ministry of Budget and National Planning as well as those handling budget issues in all ministries and extra-ministerial agencies are grappling to master the technicalities in the ZBB template.
“As such therefore, some errors are not unexpected in the changeover to the new ZBB approach.
“This was the reason the ministry arranged for the proposals to be placed on the website of the Ministry of Budget and National Planning to expose them to public scrutiny.”
This is perhaps another admission of the failures of this government and its inability to appoint a cabinet on time. It has obviously relied on Civil servants who have failed woefully in their jobs. Where this to have happened in the private sector, people would have been fired. Will heads roll for this disaster?