The Presidential candidate on the platform of Labour Party, in the February 2023 poll, Mr Peter Obi, has called for the Nigerian Senate to offer full explanations regarding the budget padding scandal.
He emphasised the need for transparency and accountability in the management of the nation’s finances.
Obi stated, “It is sacrosanct for every penny of Nigeria’s public fund to be used for the public good.”
The Senate recently suspended Senator Abdul Ningi over allegations of N3.7 trillion padding of the 2024 Budget. Ningi claimed that the Federal Government is operating two versions of the budget and that the N28.7 trillion Budget passed and signed into law was skewed against the North. However, the Presidency and many Senators dismissed Ningi’s claims as “far-fetched and unbecoming.”
In response to the claims made by Ningi, the Presidency stated that the National Assembly padded the budget with N1.27 trillion and questioned the origin of the alleged N3 trillion. Mr Obi stressed that even if there is no N3 trillion as claimed, the N1.2 trillion admitted by the executive branch could have positively impacted the nation if channeled into critical areas of development.
In a communique shared on Wednesday via X, Mr Obi emphasised that the alleged N3 trillion is more than the national budget of the two most critical components of the human development index, health and education, combined.
He urged both the Senate and the Presidency to prioritise the public good
