Don’t Use 2022 Supplementary Budget For Palliatives, CSO Tells Tinubu

A Civil society organisation, Good Governance Initiative (GGI), has faulted the demand by President Bola Tinubu that the National Assembly should amend the 2022 supplementary appropriation act to make provisions for N500 million to cushion the effect of subsidy removal.

It also berated the federal lawmakers for acceding to the president’s request, warning that drawing funds for the palliatives from the supplementary budget has negative implications on the rule of law and due process insisting that it could make investors lose confidence on Nigeria.

The president had recently sought and got the National Assembly’s approval to amend the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act to spend N500billion as palliatives and other capital expenditure to cushion the impact of subsidy removal.

The total size of the 2022 supplementary budget is N819billion, out of which N705billion is allocated to the federal ministry of works and housing while N69bn is for the ministry of agriculture.

It is out of this lump sum that the president requested for approval to move N500billion, more than fifty percent of the total sum, for palliative.

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Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, executive secretary of the CSO, Tony Luka, said the immediate past administration of President Muhammadu Buhari through the ministry of works awarded contracts for the road infrastructures and some of the contractors have completed their work, while others have done more than 50%.

“It is therefore a breach of agreement for the government to move the money that was clearly voted for these jobs to a phantom palliative. The fact that the national assembly approved this show how selfish the lawmakers are,” he added.

Luka said findings by the CSO showed that some of the contractors took facilities from banks to commence work, pointing out that government’s decision to use the money meant to pay them for palliatives could further worsen the situation.

He expressed the fears that some of the contractors could be forced to abandon the sites, which could have catastrophic effect since there are report of flooding in some areas already.

“The fact that Mr President who is seen as a business man that will provide clementine environment for genuine business men to do their trade could condone this is worrying to us.

“Should this not be immediately reversed with the contractors paid and those yet to finish the job getting full assurance of being paid upon completion, then we should be ready to see investors leave in droves” he added.

Urging the president to rescind the decision and ensure the money is used for what it was initially budgeted, the CSO said doing otherwise would compound the woes of most Nigerians as work on the road infrastructures would be stalled.

Luka chided the National Assembly for approving the president’s request “simply because they have been assured of N70bn’ noting ‘they are comfortable with their constituents being killed or displaced by flood disaster while they ride big vehicles in Abuja.”

He continued: “The ministry of work has awarded contracts worth N705bn to different contractors, bothering on infrastructures destroyed by 2022 flood disaster and most of the contractors have since mobilised to site and jobs are at various level of completion.

“Government’s decision to take N500bn the budget will negatively impact on the contract and some commitments entered into with the federal government.

“Should this be allowed to stand, it will negatively impact on the relationship between the federal government and contractors or investors. No investor will freely invest in Nigeria because of uncertainty of this nature”.