CSO identifies N15b in NASS budget as wasteful, frivolous

A Coalition of Civil Society Groups under the aegis of Citizens Wealth Platform has descried the sum of N15 billion in the National Assembly budget as wasteful and frivolous.

They made the submission at the ongoing public hearing in Abuja.

In their presentation, the coalition urged the Upper legislative arm to cut cost of its budget from N115 billion to N110 billion in consideration of austere situation that the nation was passing through.
“The total vote of N115 billion should be reduced to N110 billion in the spirit of of austere times and to demonstrate solidarity with Nigerians who are suffering and going through untold hardship”, the group expressed.
They emphasised that the sum of N150 million voted to be used for passage of Petroleum Industry Bill was a wasteful Expenditure, adding that the budget was previously provided for the exercise, but yielded no results.
The group also identified the sum of N450 million for governance and institutional reforms as inappropriate, unclear, and a waste.

Meanwhile, the Senate President has repeatedly promised that the 8th Senate under his leadership would made public budget proposals of the National Assembly.
It was also recalled that following public suspicion of National Assembly’s yearly budget, the former Senate Leader, Ali Ndume has advised that the Senate should make its proposals public.