The national assembly on Friday listed 24 items under which it added N245,512,325,726 to the 2018 budget.
The legislators were reacting to President Muhammadu Buhari’s complaints about the budget after signing it into law on Wednesday.
He said the lawmakers added 6,403 projects of their own to the budget.
Abdulrazak Namdas, spokesman of the house of representatives, and Abdullahi Sabi (senate), have defended the action of the federal lawmakers.
“The following 24 additions, which were done to the 2018 Appropriations Bill, due to the increase in the benchmark price of oil were duly appropriated by the National Assembly after full consultations, and in many cases, requests by the Executive branch through the Ministry of Budget and National Planning,” they said.
They listed the “augmentation” to the budget as follows:
- Augmentation to unity schools meal subsidy in Education Sector 3,701,587,104
- Outstanding liability on exchange rate differential for 2015 & 2016 Bea ongoing remittances to 12 Bea countries (scholarship) 3,265,720,064
- Rehabilitation of block C, D, G & H at the Headquarters and Lagos state office of Federal Ministry Of Industry, Trade & Investment 1,207,942,115
- Construction of Kashimbilla/Gamovo multipurpose dam 2,000,000,000
- Strengthening public health against LASSA fever/other outbreaks: procurement and installation of incinerators, procurement of personal protective equipment, ribavirin and laboratory reagents and training of health personnel, construction of isolation ward at university of Abuja teaching hospital, Gwagwalada 2,000,000,000
- Fast Power Programme Accelerated Gas and Solar Power Generation 12,500,000,000
- Expansion and reinforcement of infrastructure in 11 distribution companies to reduce stranded generation capacity 30,000,000,000
- Alternative energy development fund 1,000,000,000
- Completion of headquarters building (FMWA) 500,000,000
- Construction of 3000 capacity maximum security prison in Abuja (Phase I) 6,031,862,972
- Procurement of 3 x jf17 thunder aircraft 12,792,939,682
- Security vote (including augmentation of shortfall in operational funds) for Nigerian Navy 3,000,000,000
- Department of state security – pensions (including arrears) 6,318,326,710
- Contributions to international Organisations 11,000,000,000
- Contingency 2,800,000,000
- Military operation: Lafiya dole & other operations of the armed forces 3,000,000,000
- Subscription to shares in international Organisations 11,000,000,000
- SDG special projects 38,000,000,000
- Contingency (capital) 2,000,000,000
- Promotion, recruitment & appointment for police service commission 5,393,947,080
- Additional provision to some security agencies 10,000,000,000
- Additional provision of 82b naira on critical federal roads e.g. rehabilitation of Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano 10b naira, rehabilitation of Lagos-Badagry-Seme road 4b naira, rehabilitation/dualisation of Calabar-Itu-Ikot Ekpene-Aba-Owerri Road 7b 92,000,000,000
- Additional 12b naira to new federal universities 12,000,000,000
- National Institute for Legislative Studies (NILS) 4,000,000,000
TOTAL N245,512,325,726