ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The House of Representatives has rejected representatives of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor and the comptroller general of Nigeria Customs Service, insisting that they appear personally to defend their 2024 budget proposal.
Additionally, the representatives of the Federal Inland Revenue Service were also rejected by the House Committee on Appropriation.
Abubakar Bitchi, the committee chairman, expressed this on Friday in Abuja during the budget defence session, stating that the heads of the agencies were invited to participate in the interactive session.
Mr Bitchi emphasized that the revenue-generating agencies must prioritize generating money because, without sufficient funds, President Bola Tinubu will not be able to work any magic to ensure the full budget performance.
“The objective of this engagement is to provide highlights on key issues regarding (the preparation, enactment, and implementation of the 2024 budget,” said the lawmaker.
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He mentioned that these key issues include strategies for addressing rising inflation, reducing Nigeria’s debt burden, sector budget allocations, budget releases dynamics, economic diversification strategies, revenue generation forecasts, and other relevant information that will facilitate the enactment of the bill and effective implementation of the Appropriations Act 2024.
Mr Bitchi also highlighted concerns about addressing the infrastructure gap, eliminating poverty, and achieving the eight-point Renewed Hope Agenda.
“While the revised MTEF (Medium Term Expenditure Framework) and FSP (Fiscal Strategy Paper) indicate that revenue-generating efforts by the present administration are already yielding results, more needs to be done to ensure that government-owned enterprises optimize their revenue-generating potential,” he explained.
The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu, also addressed the interactive session and emphasized its significance in shedding light on the budget.
“Mr President is ambitious and has made it clear that Nigeria is not where it should be. The revenue we currently collect is only about 10 percent, and the president has directed that we raise it to 18 percent,” said Mr Bagudu.
He acknowledged the lawmakers’ interest in how funds are spent and expressed the government’s willingness to cooperate with the executive to take Nigeria to greater heights.
Mr Bagudu mentioned that the 2024 proposal includes increased spending on infrastructure, education, and other sectors. He also highlighted a budget appropriation proposal of $100 billion for the Sustainable Agriculture Fund.
Furthermore, the federal government aims to ensure that the nation’s manufacturing sector focuses more on production than on demand.
NAN.