The 2017 Federal Budget, which has been signed by the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo is currently being altered by officials in the Presidency.
This is according to an article on Reuters which claims that despite signing the budget, the FG is still amending it due to disagreements between National Assembly and the Presidency.
Reuters claimed its source was an official of the government who was not authorised to comment on the matter and disclosed that
“Before the budget was signed it was agreed between the executive and the lawmakers that those insertions of some new projects into the budget made by the National Assembly should be removed and replaced with the priority projects of the federal government which the lawmakers removed,”
They also referred to a budget spokesperson who had referred to
“Osinbajo’s June statement from the budget signing, in which he said the National Assembly had agreed to reinstate federal government projects and that “will be expeditiously considered and approved by the National Assembly.”
Last year, Nigerians were embarrassed to hear accusations and counter accusations of padding of the budget between the Presidency and the National Assembly. This year, the Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has been having a war of words with the National Assembly for reducing the budget allocated to some of their key projects in exchange for constituency projects, an assertion that the National Assembly has somewhat denied.
