Details Of 2016 Budget Ready For President Buhari
The long expected controversial details of the 2016 Appropriation Bill are ready and have been sent to the Clerk of the National Assembly for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari for his assent.
In a statement jointly signed by the chairmen of the Appropriation Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives, Danjuma Goje and Abdulmumin Jibrin respectively, the committees thanked Nigerians for their patience and understanding.
The chairmen said it took their committees extra weeks to get the details ready “so we could correct all the inconsistencies, errors, omissions and padding in the document submitted to them in December last year.
“Being the most important economic policy tool of government, the budget provides a comprehensive statement of our priorities as a nation.
“And as representatives of the people, the National Assembly remains the appropriate place to ensure that the details of such a document best match our national goals and aspirations.
“Therefore, what we have been doing in these past few weeks is to balance the projections for revenue against the estimates for expenditure based on the reality of our situation today.
“Unfortunately, that task has been made very difficult by the sloppy manner in which the 2016 Appropriation Bill was prepared by the executive such that many of the officials who came before our various committees practically disowned the inputs from their own departments and ministries.
“In most instances, and across several agencies, the bill that was initially presented to us failed in many respects to connect with the policy thrust of the government and the needs of our people.
“That is aside the fact that most of the figures simply did not just add up. It was one of the most controversial budgets that ever came to the National Assembly from the Executive.
“Fortunately, President Muhammadu Buhari, who we must commend for showing leadership, intervened and that helped in resolving what had become a serious logjam.
“Some officials in the executive branch have also been removed from their duty posts because of these glaring lapses. That happened because the president took direct responsibility and got involved in the process, not only to ensure synergy between the executive and the legislature but also so that we could both arrive at a budget that is implementable for the good of all Nigerians.
“However, it is important to stress that this is the first time we would have a transition from the ruling political party to the opposition, so some of these problems are understandable.
“We therefore believe that the executive will learn from the mistakes of this year, going forward. But we must also commend the leadership of the National Assembly as well as members of our own committees who have had to endure sleepless nights, especially in recent weeks.
“To the extent that the budget drafting phase is a long process, the committee stage provides the most significant opportunity for members of the public, including the media and civil society organizations to make their own contributions and we have taken into account all shades of opinions in arriving at the breakdown, which is now with the executive.
“Now that the 2016 budget has been passed, our next role is to add value to the process through legislative oversight functions that enable us to ensure adherence to priorities while monitoring effective allocation of resources. But there is a lesson that should not be lost on the executive given the current experience.
“We specifically urge the president to abide strictly with provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act which stipulates that the appropriation bill be presented early so that there could be sufficient time for interactive sessions between the executive and the legislature before the commencement of committee hearings.
“That way, we can avoid some of the controversies that dogged this year’s budget and add value to the entire process.” [myad]
Abuja Disco And Its Apo Customers, By Moses Okpogode
I should have probably discussed the effects of rising inflation and the collapse of the naira against the dollars and other foreign currencies or the pains that parents, who don’t have assets to sell, are going through as they strive to keep their wards in schools abroad since those in the country have become archaic, dilapidated and ill-equipped to provide an education fitting for the challenges of the 21st century.
But then again, maybe I have been overwhelmed by the issues of pipelines vandalism and the political criminality that necessitated the constructions of power generation plants in regions far away from where gas is in surplus supply just to appease a few without considering the economic and logistic case. Not to mention the sabotage occasioned by insecurity. If the builders had even thought it wise to hire the Israelis who are well known for securing networks of pipelines maybe incidents of vandalism would have been averted and a lot of money saved by the federal government. Nigerians would have also be talking less about vandalization of the pipelines and the attendant power shortages at this time. But no one attended to them all these while.
I will also not bore you with the cleaning of the Augean stables right now as even while the cleaning is ongoing, some government agencies are still neck deep in creating uglier dirts with reports substantiating the non remittance of over 814 billion naira to the federation account by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation in the six months through December of 2015. I believe the state governors know how to handle such issues as non remittances affects their monthly allocations from FAAC
There was no way I was also going to dissipate my energy on discussing the serial cases of armed robbery, banditry, pillaging, reported and unreported incidences of burglary all over adjoining settlements in the Abuja area, making a mockery of security and safety campaigns in the FCT. I didn’t also say nothing has been said about the influx of street urchins, lout activities and thuggery in the Abuja city centre or on the destruction of road shoulders by commuter vehicle operators who have harnessed to themselves portions of the Abuja metropolis, serving as their loading parks and bays. No one can make me delve into their activities that is now deconstructing the roads constructed with oil resources that are now scarce and are also in short supply.
However what had not been talked about is the inglorious audacity on display by officials of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, who have made life so unbearable for me, my family and residents of Zone E, in the Apo Resettlement Area, and other residents in different parts of Abuja.
Due to blackouts, it will be folly to stock perishables and other food items in our refrigerators. We have been unable to pump waters from our boreholes just the same way sleep has eluded us in the heat of the season. Our children’s faces, neck and bodies have been ravaged by heat rashes, with increasing cases of dehydration over a situation that is without an immediate solution. Nowadays, it’s perpetually dark all nights.
It is so depressing and absolutely appalling that despite AEDC’s estimated revenue of over 1.5 billon naira on fixed charges alone, and another estimated 12 billion naira being the regular monthly revenue from an average of N8000 bill per household, the AEDC has not seem and deemed it fit or necessary to replace or repair the transformer servicing my area in the past months.
They have also not satisfactorily responded to several calls to the company’s customer service center. Even visits with officials of the company by emissaries of residents of the area have failed to yield any action to rectify the problem thereby cutting us off from electricity grid for several days as a result of the general poor power generation and national transmission shortages.
This is not acceptable. It calls for caution and immediate action as the days of usurping the masses of their rights are over with the privatization of power distribution in the country. AEDC has no options but to sit up and provide basic electricity distribution services effectively to customers within its coverage area. It is disheartening to see residents of an area in this era of change, chasing after AEDC technicians to restart a transformer suffering overloads despite several feed backs to management from the field officers about the problem affecting just a single transformer that supplies electricity to around 40 homes.
The actions and inactions of AEDC management and staff have shown that they are not in tandem with President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s change mantra and if so, there is need for them to be reprimanded if they can’t fix the transformer as a matter of urgency.
Just as I was about to conclude this piece my March bill arrived and was up by over 300 percent tariff increment without corresponding electricity. I’m already off to lay my complaint before the Acting Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
Twitter: @MOkoogode. [myad]