Reps urge Ministers Edun, Badugu to resign over zero capital budget in 2025
Members of the House of Representatives have called on the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, his Budget & Economic Planning counterpart, Atiku Bagudu, and Chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service (NRS), Zach Adede to render their resignation over non-performance of the 2025 budget.
In a mild drama witnessed during a presentation to the House Committee on Appropriation, the lawmakers queried the trio on zero releases for capital components of the 2025 budget.
According to the lawmakers, this has grounded projects and other economic activities across all sectors of the economy and government agencies throughout the 2024 fiscal year.
Speaking during the budget defence, chairman of the committee, Abubakar Bichi the meeting was aimed at probing the non-release of funds for the execution of capital projects.
Bauchi noted that despite the increase in revenue generation and excess earnings, projects were not carried out as captured in the 2025 budget.
His words, “This is for us to study, consider and approve the request. We decided to engage the economic team of the President to discuss the previous performance of 2025, as well as the proposed 2026 performance.
“We have decided to engage the NRS Chairman to shed more light on the revenue in terms of the 2026 projections. In 2025 we achieved about 28 trillion in our revenue, from the target of 25 trillion. We need to have more information from you so that Nigerians who are watching will be informed”, Bichi said.
At the session which also turned rowdy, the House of Representatives members noted that they had earlier received requests for approval of N1.15 trillion for capital projects funding.
They stated that while both the Lower and Upper Chambers had approved the request for the executive, capital projects were still not executed.
Reacting to the allegations, Edun informed the House that the Federal Government had stopped the printing of money.
Edun stated the process was unsustainable, irrespective of, whether the funds were for debt servicing or payment of contractors and to meet other obligations of the government.
He added that the FG was shifting from irregularity to regularising the systems thereby stalling some key activities.
“Now we have Naira debt of N152 trillion. About N30 trillion of that was an adjustment.
“Not new funding, it was just bringing in to the books of the government what was previously ignored as if it didn’t exist and then another N50 trillion was exchange rate adjustment, because when we moved from an opaque system of foreign exchange allocation to market based, of course the exchange, we all know where it moved from in 2023 to 2024, for example,” Edun stated.
Also speaking, Bagudu said Ministru had moved 70 per cent of the 2025 capital budget into the next year’s.
He reminded the lawmakers that the decision to move the past year’s budget is what formed part of the 2026 budget proposal presented before the National Assembly.
Bagudu added, “The Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, including the Budget Office, relies on the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and Ministry of Finance, for data about budget implementation”.
However, visibly angered by Edun’s response, the lawmakers yelled at the minister, his Budget and Economic Planning counterpart and Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite.
They called for their resignation over what they described as a lack of competence.
In his effort to save the day, the chairman of the committee, pleaded with the lawmakers to step down the hearing pending the appearance of the Minister of State for Finance.
The hearing was further adjourned till Thursday, by 1pm, while the Minister of State for Finance who summoned with immediate effect.
