return the 2016 Budget to the National Assembly
to rework because what the lawmakers sent to
him on Thursday for assent, according to
Presidency sources, fell below his expectations.
By implication, Buhari will not sign the
Appropriation Bill into law, as earlier planned,
before jetting out of the country this weekend to
China for economic and business deals for
Nigeria.
The sources confirmed that the President felt
disappointed that provisions for major national
projects and programmes that could turn around
the economy were either outrightly removed or
funds for them ridiculously slashed by the
lawmakers.
It will be recalled that in a bid to urgently assent
to the bill, which was transmitted to him on
Thursday, the Presidency had convened an
emergency Federal Executive Council meeting on
Friday where the document was distributed to
Ministers to review as it affected their respective
Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
At the review meeting presided over by Vice
President Yemi Osinbajo, who is the Head of the
Economic Team, it was discovered that many
strategic projects were either removed or
provisions made for them significantly slashed to
the point that made a mockery of the projects.
Among the key projects removed from the
budget by the lawmakers are the all-important
Calabar-Lagos coastal rail line, for which Buhari
had made a provision of N60 billion in the 2016
estimates.
Incidentally, the railway project is one of the key
issues taking Buhari to China.
While that was removed, the lawmakers left the
Kano/Lagos railway project untouched, but also
went ahead to reduce the amount set aside for
the completion of the Idu/Kaduna railway
project, which has reached an advanced stage of
completion, by N8.7 billion.
A top government official, who was privy to the
fiscal document, summed the discoveries in the
budget that shocked Buhari this way: “At the
meeting, it was noticed that some very key
aspects of the budget, which have to do with
government’s core infrastructural focus, were
removed.
“One of the projects is the subject of the
President’s trip to China – the Lagos/ Calabar
coastal railway project – for which a counterpart
funding of N60 billion was provided, but which
was completely removed by the National
Assembly.
“The executive is working on two major rail
arteries, among other rail projects, to service the
northern and eastern parts of the country – the
Lagos/Kano line and the Calabar/Lagos line.
“While the Lagos-Kano provision was left
untouched, the Calabar/ Lagos line was removed.
“The projects are to be funded jointly by
governments of China and Nigeria.
“It is one of the main reasons for the President’s
scheduled trip to China.
“Also, the amount proposed for the completion of
the Idu/Kaduna rail project, which has reached
an advanced stage, was reduced by N8.7 billion,
a development which will make it difficult for the
project to be completed.”
The source added that another fundamental area
noticed in the document was the completion of
ongoing road projects.
It was learnt that while the executive had
provided for the completion of all major road
projects across the country, the National
Assembly reduced the amounts provided and
instead included new roads, on which studies
have not even been conducted.
The source lamented: “The amounts provided by
the National Assembly for the projects can
neither complete the ongoing road projects nor
the new ones proposed.
“At the end of the year, no progress would have
been made.”
According to the source, a top Presidency
official, allocations for the purchase of essential
drugs for major health campaigns like polio and
AIDS, for which the store is fast depleting, were
removed and the amounts allocated to provision
of ambulance, which the health ministry did not
ask for.
The source said: “It was also observed that
certain provisions made in the areas of
agriculture and water resources to further the
Federal Government’s diversification project
were either removed or reduced, while the funds
were moved to provisions of rural health facilities
and boreholes, for which provisions have been
made elsewhere.
“The President is desirous of signing the Bill into
law so that implementation of the provisions
could begin in earnest for the benefit of the
people.
“That is why the moment he received the
document on Thursday, a meeting was convened
for Friday to immediately start work on it.”
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