The National Assembly has granted President Bola Tinubu‘s request seeking the extension of the capital component of the 2023 budget and the Supplementary Appropriation Act.
Lawmakers in the Senate and House Of Representatives granted an extension from June to December, after considering their clauses at the committee on supply.
This process was not without some concerns as shared in the House Of Representatives.
After Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas read the President’s letter, some lawmakers opposed the call for the debate of the president’s request.
The majority leader of the house, Julius Ihonvbere, moved for the debate of the bill, saying the amendment does not alter the content of the bill but just the date.
The minority leader of the house, Kingsley Chinda, expressed concern that the two budgets are running concurrently.
He said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration was criticised for lacking a clear budgetary cycle, adding that the current administration is potentially repeating the mistake.
The ranking legislator demanded that the bill be stepped down to enable the government to “go back to the drawing board”.
But An All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker from Katsina, Sada Soli, opposed Chinda, saying the PDP lawmaker was “playing to the gallery”.
His comment prompted vocal protests from the lawmakers.
Following the bickering, the lawmakers moved into an executive session.
