Buhari gets N/Assembly approval to present 2017 budget

   

    The National Assembly yesterday approved President Muhammadu Buhari’s request to present the 2017 budget on Wednesday, December 14. The approval of the request was sequel to a motion raised by the Senate Leader, Ali Ndume and seconded by the Deputy Minority Leader, Emmanuel Bwacha.


   When Senate President Bukola Saraki raised question on whether the president’s request be approved or not, senators voted in its favour. In his remark, Saraki said with the approval, the joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives will sit on Wednesday to receive the President.

   Our correspondent reports that the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF)/Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), a prerequisite for the presentation of the budget has not been approved by the National Assembly. Senators had picked holes in the benchmark set for the 2017 budget including the exchange rate of N290 per dollar, 2.2m dollar per day and the $42.5 crude oil benchmark contained in the MTEF/FSP.

    It was recalled  that last year, MTEF/FSP was passed five days before the presentation of the 2016 budget. MTEF/FSP was passed on December 17 and the budget was presented on December 5. In an interview, the Deputy Senate Leader, Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah said the passage of the MTEF /FSP was not a precondition for the presentation of the budget. “The passage of MTEF/FSP is not a precondition for accepting budget but for the passage of budget, “he said.


    The approval of the request was sequel to a motion raised by the Senate Leader, Ali Ndume and seconded by the Deputy Minority Leader, Emmanuel Bwacha. When Senate President Bukola Saraki raised question on whether the president’s request be approved or not, senators voted in its favour.

     In his remark, Saraki said with the approval, the joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives will sit on Wednesday to receive the President. Our correspondent reports that the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF)/Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), a prerequisite for the presentation of the budget has not been approved by the National Assembly.

     Senators had picked holes in the benchmark set for the 2017 budget including the exchange rate of N290 per dollar, 2.2m dollar per day and the $42.5 crude oil benchmark contained in the MTEF/FSP. “The passage of MTEF/FSP is not a precondition for accepting budget but for the passage of budget, “he said.
Source- Dailytrust