*Budget not withdrawn — Presidency; it’s not missing —Ndume
*It’s national embarrassment — Senator
*The document is available in the House — Reps
By Henry Umoru, Joseph Erunke & Johnbosco Agbakwuru
ABUJA—A web of conspiracy was, yesterday, being woven around the
circumstances that led to the disappearance from the Senate, of hard and
soft copies of the 2016 Appropriation Bill presented to the National
Assembly last December.
The absence of the budget document, it was learned, led to the
failure of the Senate to commence formal deliberations on the budget
yesterday.
The controversy was further stoked at a closed-door session of the
Senate where the issue reportedly split senators along partisan lines
with Peoples Democratic Party, PDP senators accusing Presidency
officials of conspiring with the National Assembly bureaucracy to steal
the budget document.
Following the closed-door session, President of the Senate, Senator
Bukola Saraki proceeded to the Presidential Villa where he met President
Muhammadu Buhari supposedly on the issue.
PDP senators who accused the presidency of silently withdrawing the
budget to revise down supposedly outrageous items in the budget bill
were last night locked in a meeting where they were believed to be
discussing the issue.
Budget not withdrawn — Presidency
The assertion of the missing budget document was, however, quickly
dismissed by the Presidency which last night denied withdrawing the
budget. Besides, the Presidency deposed that hundreds of copies of the
budget document have been shipped to the Senate and the House of
Representatives.
The air of confusion and controversy in the Senate was, however,
totally lacking in the House of Representatives as it was confirmed that
the budget document was available and would be distributed today.
Confusion in Senate
Senators returning from the Yuletide break were said to have been
engrossed in speculations over the missing budget document before
commencement of sitting yesterday. Speculations were fuelled by the
absence of the second reading of the appropriation bill on the order
paper of yesterday.
Reportedly feeling the pressure on the issue, the Senate President
called for a closed-door session immediately after opening prayers at
11.11 a.m.
The closed door session lasted for about 90 minutes, during which
Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, was said to have drawn the attention of
Senators to what was termed a developing story around the Budget 2016
document.
According to sources, the Senators were told that the official document as presented by the President could no longer be seen.
On hearing that both the soft and hard documents of the budget were
missing, angry senators promptly called for investigation into the
matter.
Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio was said to have expressed
annoyance over the way and manner such an official document was handled
by National Assembly officials and he was said to have immediately
thrown his weight behind calls for interrogation of key members of the
National Assembly bureaucracy to get to the root of the embarrassing
situation.
An inside source in the Senate leadership, however, expressed
reservation on the outburst of Senators at the closed-door session,
saying:“How can they claim ignorance of the disappearance of the
document now? The Presidency could not have moved into the National
Assembly to take the document if no deal was struck with the leadership
of the National Assembly. We have always heard that there was a plan to
delay the budget to allow the executive arm of government sort itself
out. They (Senate leadership) are now acting funny since it has been
exposed that the budget is being delayed to allow the Presidency effect
necessary adjustments in the budget proposal.”
Budget not missing, says Ali Ndume
Meanwhile, apparently learning that what happened in the closed-door
session had leaked to journalists, Ndume suddenly came out to renounce
insinuations of a missing budget.
“Budget cannot be missing. One copy can be laid, it is a symbolic
copy, the budget will be in custody of both chambers, it cannot be
stolen, it cannot be missing. Once the budget is laid in the National
Assembly, it has become the property of the National Assembly.”
He said Saraki’s visit to the Villa was to sift out the President’s priorities on the budget.
“Saraki’s visit to the Villa is for Senate to know the President’s
priority; we want to see how we can fast-track passage of the budget
before end of February. What is before the Senate is proposal; once the
President signs it, it cannot be amended, we can turn the budget upside
down, it cannot be missing, “ Ndume insisted.
Ndume’s assertion was, however, quickly rebuffed by another senator
who described the act of the missing 2016 budget as a clear theft.
‘National embarrassment’
The Senator who noted that it was a national embarrassment to the
country, said: “This is hypocrisy on the part of government. We were
surprised that a document like the budget of a country could be declared
missing. It is a big embarrassment, with the fanfare that greeted the
presentation of the budget to the National Assembly by President
Muhammadu Buhari, the government presented a picture that it was serious
and ready.
“This is a parliamentary issue. The document as presented has gone to
first reading, it is now the property of the National Assembly. When we
were told at the Executive session, we asked the Clerk, he said he was
not aware, we asked him, he said he did not know. We asked Ita Enang, he
said he was not aware.”
“The soft and hard copies are missing under circumstances that are
still shrouded in mystery. The executive and management of National
Assembly colluded. It is against parliamentary procedure. Once you
present a bill to the Senate, it is now the property of the National
Assembly.
“To take the document outside NASS is a national embarrassment. What
happened is wrong, they could still have done the adjustment, after all,
it is still a bill, instead of stealing it. Maybe there is something
there they do not want Nigerians to know. It is a clear case of theft,
they should let the world know when next they are bringing it.”
Dismissing the confusion in the Senate yesterday, Senior Special
Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu
said the President did not withdraw the budget even as he noted that
hundreds of the budget document had been shipped to the two chambers of
the National Assembly.
“Nobody, except the President can withdraw the budget and as far as we know, he hasn’t done that.
“The copies in their hundreds have been delivered to both chambers of the National Assembly.
“By tradition, once the budget is submitted, it ceases to be our
property. Enquiries as to where it is should be directed to the
appropriate quarters,” he said.
No missing document here — Reps
The House of Representatives was, however, far removed from the
controversy as it was learned last night that the budget document was
available in the House.
House spokesman, Abdulrazak Namdas said yesterday: “As far as the
House of Representatives is concerned, there is nothing like missing
budget. As from tomorrow, by the grace of God we shall begin to
distribute copies of the budget to members for deliberation.”
Also, PDP senators were at press time holed up in a meeting in the residence of Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu.
It was also gathered that the matter will come up today in form of a
motion and would be referred to the Senator Samuel Anyanwu-led Committee
on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions.
Spokesperson for the Senate, Senator Aliyu Sabi could not be reached
for comments. Neither the chairman of the Senate Committee on
Appropriation, Senator Danjuma Goje nor Senate Presidential Liaison
Officer, Senator Ita Enang could be reached last night.
It would be recalled that President Buhari had on December 22, 2015
presented a total budget of N6.08 trillion for 2016 to a joint session
of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
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