A bill to amend the Appropriations Act of 2022 has advanced to second reading in the Senate.
The bill proposes to amend the 2022 budget by making provisions for capital expenditures of N106,161,499,052 and recurrent expenditures of N43,870,592,044 without increasing the budget deficit.
Yahaya Abdullahi, the Senate Leader, sponsored the bill (Kebbi North).
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President Muhammadu Buhari, in a letter to the National Assembly dated February 10, 2022, emphasized the importance of eliminating all capital projects that were duplicated in the 2022 Appropriation Act.
He revealed that 139 of the budget’s 254 projects, totaling N13.24 billion, had been identified for elimination.
The President also requested that the National Assembly appropriate N2.557 trillion naira to fund the petrol subsidy in the 2022 Budget Framework, which was revised to fully fund the PMS subsidy.
Buhari asked the National Assembly to reinstate four capital projects totaling N1.4 billion in the Executive proposal for the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, as well as N22.0 billion cut from the provision for the Sinking Fund to retire mature loans required to meet the government’s obligations under previously issued bonds.
Leading debate on the general principles of the 2022 Appropriations Act Amendment bill, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi provided key highlights of the amendment to include eleven areas such as funding to cushion the impacts of the recent suspension of the Petroleum Motor Spirit subsidy removal; and addressing the negative implications that some changes made in the 2022 Appropriations Act could have on the successful implementation of the budget.
Others include restoring the provisions made in the 2022 budget proposal for various key projects to ensure that critical projects that are critical to the administration are implemented and that those nearing completion do not suffer a setback due to reduced funding; restoring the N25.18 billion cut from the provision for the Power Sector Reform Programme; restoring the four Capital Projects totaling N1.42 billion in the Executive Proposal for the Federal Ministry of Water Resources; restoring the N3 billion cut from the provision made for payment of mostly long outstanding Local Contractors’ Debts; and transferring the National Assembly’s expenditures totaling N16.59 billion in the Service Wide Vote to National Assembly Statistic.
The amendment also seeks the restoration of the N22.0 billion cut from the provision for the Sinking Fund to retire Mature Loans; the restoration of cuts made from provisions of Nigeria’s Foreign Missions’ recurrent spending; the restoration of reductions in provisions for allowances payable to personnel of the Nigerian Navy and Police Formations and Commands; and the removal of all capital projects that were replicated in the 2022 Appropriation A.
Senator Gabriel Suswam, who spoke during the debate, bemoaned the high tax expenditure in the 2922 budget.
“Tax expenditures are waivers granted to individuals or businesses.”
Mr. President, the tax expenditure in 2022 is approximately N1 trillion and completely unnecessary.
“It is not just what the president has sent here; let us consider those areas where they can save money because we may decide to reduce those tax expenditures.”
Following the bill’s second reading, Senate President Ahmad Lawan referred it to the Committee on Appropriations for further work.
The Committee was given one week to submit its report to the chamber in plenary.
Meanwhile, two bills establishing the Federal College of Education Afon, Kwara State, and the Alvan Ikoku Federal University of Education have passed second reading.
Senators Yahaya Oloriegbe (Kwara Central) and Ezenwa Onyewuchi (Kwara South) sponsored the bills (Imo East).
Following consideration, the Senate President referred both bills to the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND.
The Committee was given four weeks to submit its report to the Senate.
