The statement said in view of the “controversial alteration and padding of the budget proposal earlier”, the Nigerian president needed to review the appropriation bill to be certain that its content was intact and with the authentic budget proposal presented to the legislature.
Accusing some bureaucrats of “removing what was put in the proposal and replacing it with what they wanted”, the statement said Buhari will look at the bill that has been passed by the National Assembly, ministry by ministry, to be sure that what has been brought back for him to sign is in line with the original submission.
Buhari presented the budget proposal last December, calling for the support of the legislative arm of government for its quick passage.
After considering its conference report on the budget, the Nigerian Senate said it did not approve the original 30.5 billion U.S. dollars presented by the president to show “discipline” on its own part and to reflect “the mood of the country and the world”.
This is the first time the legislative arm of government cut down proposed figures of the national budget since Nigeria returned to democratic rule in 1999. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
