TheCable

Three senators say the alleged padding of the 2024 budget by N3 trillion is incorrect.

The senators — Sunday Karimi, senator representing Kogi west; Titus Zam, senator representing Benue north-west; and Kaka Shehu, senator representing Borno central — said the allegation is “baseless and unfounded”.

Abdul Ningi, senator representing Bauchi Central, had alleged that the 2024 budget was padded with N3 trillion in the national assembly.

Ningi, who is the chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, said “huge damage” has been done to the north and the entire country in the budget.

The national assembly had passed a budget of N28.7 trillion for the 2024 fiscal year.

In a statement on Sunday, the senators said Ningi is yet to present his evidence of the alleged malpractice.

“Senator Ningi has not given the correct information,” they said.

“He is yet to even give the senate president or the speaker of the house of representatives a copy of what he claims to have discovered in the 2024 Appropriation Act before leveling allegations of budget padding against the President, the Senate President and the Senate.

“President Tinubu presented a budget estimate of over N27 trillion on 28th November to the National Assembly, which passed a budget of over N28 trillion, which became an Act of Parliament on 1st January 2024.

“Where did Sen Ningi get his Appropriation Act of N25 trillion? What about the extra requests that chairmen of appropriation committees of both chambers claimed came from the Executive after submission of the initial over N27 trillion proposals by Mr. President?”

“So, how did Sen. Ningi’ s budget analyst get the N3 trillion budget padding allegations?

“Must we attempt to give a dog a bad name to hang it? Are APC members of Northern Senators Forum that PDP Senator Ningi claims to lead oblivious of the anti-Tinubu/Akpabio undertones?”

They added that the national assembly should not be denigrated.