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The House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation on Friday, December 8, turned back the representatives of the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Comptroller General of Customs from appearing before it for the 2024 budget defence.
The committee insisted that Cardoso and Adeniyi appear in person on Monday to answer questions on the 2024 budget.
The chairman of the committee, Hon. Abubakar Kabir Bichi said because the meeting was called to discuss the budget, the Governor of the Central Bank needed to appear before the Committee in person.
He said: “We can only interact with the Governor of the Central Bank because of the sensitivity of the issues in the budget. So, he needs to come and shed light on issues like inflation, exchange rate and all that.
“So, it is important that he appear before the Committee on Monday at 10 am. The Comptroller General of Customs is also to appear in person because we are talking about the budget and how to increase our revenue. He is also to appear in person by 10.00 am on Monday.”
Other agencies appearing before the committee on Monday are the Federal Inland Revenue Service, NPA, NNPC Limited, Minister of Finance, and Minister. Or State for Petroleum Resources, NUPRC, and the NCC
Bichi said while the N27 trillion budget may appear big, the revenue target for government-owned companies to fund the budget was not enough, hence the invitation of the agencies by the committee.
Addressing the meeting, Bichi described the rising inflation in the country as a major problem hence the need for GOEs to appear before the committee for further interaction.
He said reducing the burden of Nigeria’s debt profile, sectoral budgetary allocations, and the dynamics of budget releases, economic diversification strategies, and revenue generation forecasts is needed to facilitate the enactment of the bill and effective implementation of the Appropriations Act, 2024.
According to him, revenue-generating agencies must come with money because, without money, there is no magic the President can perform to ensure the realization of the Renewed Hope Budget.
He said while President Bola Tinubu’s 2024 budget is fantastic, a lot of money is needed to fund the budget.
Bitchi said: “The objective of this engagement is, among others, to provide highlights on some key issues about the preparation, enactment, and implementation of the 2024 budget.”
He said there were concerns about addressing the infrastructural gap in the country, eliminating poverty, and generally achieving the 8-Point Renewed Hope Agenda.
He added that there was a need to ensure that all loose ends to revenue were tied, adding that this could have a gross impact on the government’s ability to implement the 2024 Appropriation Bill when passed.
He stated: “While the revised MTEF and FSP showed that revenue-generating efforts by the present administration are already yielding fruit, more needs to be done to ensure that government-owned enterprises optimize their revenue-generating potential.”
He said the objective of this engagement is, among others, to provide highlights on some key issues concerning the preparation, enactment, and implementation of the 2024 budget.
He said: “The highlights may include strategies for addressing rising inflation, reducing the burden of Nigeria’s debt profile, sectoral budgetary allocations, and the dynamics of budget releases.
“Others are economic diversification strategies, revenue generation forecasts, and any useful information that will facilitate the enactment of the bill and effective implementation of the Appropriations Act, 2024.”
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