Abuja, Lagos — With an allegation by
the Senate that the Presidency
circulated fake copies of the 2016
budget, the controversy over the
"missing" fiscal plan took a turn for
the worse yesterday.
According to the Senate, the fake
copies, which were brought by the
Senior Special Assistant to the
President on National Assembly
Matters (Senate), Solomon Ita Enang,
were completely different from the
copy of the N6.08 trillion 2016 budget
proposal presented by President
Muhammadu Buhari to a joint
session of the National Assembly on
December 22, 2015.
The President of the Senate, Bukola
Saraki, who made the allegation at
the executive session, declared that
the upper legislative chamber would
treat only the original copy of the
budget proposal as presented by
Buhari last Month.
When approached to respond to the
accusation, Enang simply declined
comments. He was asked to disclose
the interest his efforts to serve the
Senate with fake versions of the
budget proposal were meant to serve.
However, the Presidency has said it is
not prepared to engage the National
Assembly in a war of words over the
2016 budget. It said it would rather
build on the existing cordial
relationship between the two arms of
government.
The Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Media and Publicity,
Garba Shehu, said the executive
would not do anything that would
distract the lawmakers from working
on the budget. His words: "We are
happy that they are ready to get on
with the budget. We don't want
anything that will distract them from
their work. The present level of
relationship between the Executive
and the Legislature is too precious to
be expended on issues that are not
compelling."
The Senate had on Tuesday directed
its Ethics, Privileges and Public
Petitions Committee to investigate
allegations that the budget proposal
was missing. Announcing the
decision taken at the executive
session which lasted over two hours
yesterday, Saraki said: "We have
received the report of the Committee
on Ethics, Privileges and Public
Petitions on investigations
surrounding 2016
Appropriation Bill. Our finding is that
Senator Ita Enang, the Senior Special
Assistant to the President on National
Assembly Matters (Senate) printed
copies of the 2016 Appropriation Bill
and brought them to the Senate.
"We have discovered that what he
brought is different from the version
presented by Mr. President. We have
resolved to consider only the version
presented by Mr. President as soon as
we receive soft copy of the original
document from the Executive."
Even as the Senate claimed it was
awaiting the soft copy of the
original budget proposal, it was
learnt yesterday that the budget bill
had already been gazetted for debate
next week. The budget bill number
SB.212 as gazetted was contained in
the volume 13 of the National
Assembly Journal of January 12,
2016.
Explaining further, Senate
spokesman, Aliu Saabi Abdullahi, told
journalists at a press conference
shortly after the Senate session, that
Saraki was mandated to raise the
issue of the fake budget with Buhari,
adding that it was the reason Saraki
visited Buhari on Tuesday.
www.allafrica.com/stories/201601150089.html

Just here to buy/book space

This country is becoming a joke! Nollywood no sabi act reach our politicians with Everyday new drama. God come help Nigeria!

Lalasticlala come see oo!

This is an impeachable offence but we will forgive Buhari because osinbajo is not capable of that seat. We senate will hold this against u when we need to strike a deal in future... those with me say hay. Hay!!!
Hays take it.

In 2baba voice "e be like say dey want to act another movie again oh" featuring all of d shaddy politicians Chai no be small thing oh

These people are always taking us for a ride. This is pathetic.

Heads will roll for this national embarrassment. I expect some people to get the sack notice soon. BBOG said Buhari entered the hall angry. I have a feeling that his altitude at the meeting with BBOG was a case of transferred aggression because of the anger at whoever was behind the whole budget debacle thereby giving Saraki a negotiating edge. Who ever masterminded the smuggling of the budget into the house has to be sacrificed for the administration to still stand on a moral ground.