The National Assembly (NASS) is expected to pass the 2023 Appropriation Bill next week.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan; and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, had at various times during the week indicated that the Federal Government’s budget would be passed on Thursday (today).
After Thursday’s session, the lawmakers will proceed on Christmas and New Year breaks.
However, today, the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations will not review the budget which President Muhammadu Buhari presented to the National Assembly in October, as that action was not on the Order Paper for the day.
In an attempt at national planning, every year, Nigeria draws up a budget at the federal level. This budget which usually captures everything a budget should capture, taking into consideration the income and expenditure the country forecasts in the next fiscal year.
The president and his team usually draw up the budget which is then presented to the legislature which proceeds to pick it apart prescript by prescript in one of the more salient and salubrious demonstrations of the salutary principles of checks and balances and separation of powers.
The 2023 budget expenditure of 20.51 trillion naira (US$43.7 billion) is the highest ever.
