Indication has emerged that the 2016 Budget presented to the
joint session of the National Assembly by President Mohammadu Buhari on
December 22, 2015 has been withdrawn.Sources said the budget was withdrawn by
the President to allow for reduction in allocations for some ministries,
agencies and parastatals, especially the presidency.
The budget is to be represented ‘codedly’ to the National Assembly
by the end of this month.
One of the sources said there were too many errors in the
budget that cannot be overlooked.
“The president did not read the actual budget until
criticism started flying left, right and center.
“For instance, budgetary allocation was made for renovation
of Vice President Lodge in the Presidency Budget while provision was also made
for the renovation in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Ministry’s budgetary
allocation,” the source said.
President Buhari had presented a N6.08 trillion budget for
the fiscal year 2016. In the budget, capital expenditure takes N1.8 trillion,
marking a significant over 300 per cent increment from the 2015 vote of N557
billion.
Since the budget was presented, Nigerians have been
criticising some provisions in the budget, especially relating to the
presidency.On Sunday, in its editorial comment, The Nation newspaper owned by
All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu carpeted
President Buhari on the budget, saying “some of the extravagances in the
presidency’s budget are stunningly indefensible.”“Curiously enough, President
Muhammadu Buhari’s first budget estimates after rising to power on a promise of
change have familiar ingredients associated with the old discredited order.
Details of the 2016 budget proposal reflect astonishing similarities with the
immediate past, prompting questions about the meaning of change.
“To start with, the interest in acquiring a fleet of new
high-end luxury cars for the Presidency bespeaks flawed prioritisation. A vote
of N3.6b for BMW saloon cars for principal officers is certainly on the high
side, considering that the cars are not essential for good governance.
Furthermore, the number of the cars is unspecified, leaving room for possible
corruption-related manipulation.
“Also, the mention of BMW saloon vehicles and their cost
bring to mind the matter of a former Aviation Minister in the Goodluck Jonathan
administration, Stella Oduah, who was involved in a questionable procurement of
two bullet-proof BMW cars at $800,000 each during her tenure. The Buhari
government cannot afford such a stain at this time when it is trying to get the
public to appreciate its claim that it met a vastly depleted treasury,” the
newspaper editorial comment read in part.
Stating further, The Nation said; “Equally odd is the N362m
allocation for Wildlife Conservation in 2016, in place of the N24. 6m voted for
the same category last year, including the purchase of exotic animals.
Ironically, the difference in the figures makes Jonathan’s government look
saintly, quite apart from the dubious category which this particular allocation
is meant to serve.“What is more, the allocation for acquisition of presidential
canteen materials and kitchen equipment increased from N83.1m in 2015 to N89m
in 2016. There is also a marginal increase in the N11m voted for supply of
foodstuff and catering services in the Vice President’s office in 2015 to
N16.6m.
“Other puzzling figures include: general renovation of the
Guest House (N387m); complete furnishing of the Guest House (N45m); purchase of
computers (N27.5m) and construction and provision of recreational facilities
(N764m). It may be asked: What are the recreational facilities missing at the
Presidency?”
Also in the budget, N189.1m was proposed to be spend on
purchase of tyres in the presidency. In addition, the expenditure on tyres is
to cover other brands of vehicles, including Toyota cars, trucks, Land Cruiser
and Prado SUVs, Hilux pick-up vans, Peugeot 607 and 406 cars, ambulances and
others broadly described as “utility and operational vehicles”.
Other expenditures on the Presidency’s vehicles include
N39.8m for the purchase of an unspecified number of 200 amps, 100 amps and 60
amps Mercedes Benz batteries for bulletproof vehicles. Also, N30m is to be expended
on the purchase of tool boxes, car jacks, and diagnostic machines for the
Presidency’s bulletproof cars. The purchase of C-Caution triangles,
fire-extinguishers and cables is to cost N27m.
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