‘It encourages fiscal indiscipline’ — NEFGAD faults n’assembly over 2024 budget extension

The Network for the Actualization of Social Growth and Viable Development (NEFGAD), a public procurement advocacy group, has accused the National Assembly of promoting fiscal indiscipline by repeatedly extending the implementation period of national budgets.

In a statement on Tuesday, Akingunola Omoniyi, NEFGAD’s country head, said the move to extend the 2024 Appropriation Act for a second time this year undermines Nigeria’s public finance framework.

“The National Assembly’s oversight responsibility on public finance is being badly compromised,” the statement reads.

“National budgets, by design and as enshrined in the Constitution, are time-bound instruments. Their nomenclature — ‘2024 Budget’, for instance — is not merely semantic.

“It reflects a constitutionally defined fiscal year, which ends on December 31 of the given appropriation.”

Earlier in the year, lawmakers extended the implementation of the 2024 budget until June 2025, but the national assembly is now considering a second extension.

Omoniyi warned that any further adjustment would breach the constitution and weaken transparency, accountability, and fiscal discipline — principles the budget system is meant to uphold.

“A budget is a financial estimate prepared by the executive with the presumption that adequate needs assessments and due diligence have been conducted,” he added.

“If implementation fails, it is the National Assembly’s duty to demand accountability — not to extend timelines endlessly.”

He said the continued existence of the 2025 Appropriation Act makes any prolonged implementation of the 2024 budget irregular and misleading.

“It is both deceptive and unlawful to continue referring to it as the 2024 Appropriation Act beyond its legal expiration date of December 31, 2024,” he said.

While acknowledging the legislature’s constitutional powers to amend laws, Omoniyi stressed that such authority must be exercised in line with the national interest.

“This power is not without limit. It must be exercised in accordance with constitutional provisions and principles,” he added.

He called on the national assembly to recommit to its constitutional role and safeguard Nigeria’s economic stability by enforcing institutional discipline in public finance management.

This is an AI assisted report.