The Presidency has faulted Abdul Ningi’s (PDP-Bauchi Central) claim about padding the 2024 budget.

It said this in a statement by presidential media aide Bayo Onanuga.

President Bola Tinubu presented a budget proposal of N27.5 trillion on November 29, 2023, to the joint session of the National Assembly made up of N9.92 trillion in recurrent expenditure, Debt Service of N8.25 trillion and Capital Expenditure of N8.7 trillion, according to the statement.

“Acting under the banner of Northern Senators’ Forum, Ningi, falsely claimed in an interview he granted BBC Hausa Service, that the national assembly debated and passed N25 Trillion as 2024 budget and not the N28.7 trillion that is being implemented by the federal government.

“Contrary to the strange view expressed by Ningi, there was no way the senate could have debated and passed a N25 trillion budget that was not presented to the national assembly. We don’t expect a ranking senator not to pay due attention to details before making wild claims,” the statement explained.

At a meeting last week, some northern senators accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of inserting projects worth N4 trillion in the 2024 budget.

They alleged that the projects, which had no locations, were inserted into the budget, which they also claimed was lopsided against the North and some parts of the South.

The northern senators also accused Akpabio of railroading the senators to hurriedly pass the budget, adding that it favoured Mr Akpabio and his cronies.

The statement said the budget of N28.7 trillion signed into law by Mr Tinubu in January was passed by the national assembly, adding that the legislature increased the amount proposed by the executive by N1.2 trillion in the exercise of its power of appropriation.

The Presidency said Mr Ningi’s claim that the 2024 budget was anti-North was uncharitable, coming from a ranking lawmaker.

“President Tinubu is leading a government that is fair and equitable to every part and segment of Nigeria. In terms of funding, distribution of capital and priority projects, the 2024 Appropriation Act was not skewed against any section of the country.

Meanwhile, senators Steve Karimi, Titus Zam, and Kaka Sheu have said that some senators’ allegations of budget padding against Mr Akpabio were unfounded, baseless, and a figment of imagination.

Dismissing the allegation as a ruse, they said while the executive brought a budget proposal of N27.5 trillion, the Senate passed a budget of N28.77 trillion.

The three senators said the forum only resolved that the report of the consultant engaged by the Northern Senators Forum be subjected to further scrutiny.

(NAN)