After a heated plenary and executive session, the House of Representatives, penultimate Tuesday, considered and passed two money bills that extended the implementation of the 2023 Appropriation Act and the 2023 Supplementary Appropriation Act until December 2024, PHILIP NYAM reports

Since 1999, passage of annual budgets has always been a thorny issue between the executive and the legislature. Due to the disagreement between the two arms of government, national budgets were never passed on time until the 9th National Assembly under the leadership Senator Ahmad Lawan (Senate) and Femi Gbajabiamila (House of Representatives) were able to return the nation to the January to December budget cycle.

As expected, the 10th National Assembly led by Senator Godswill Akpabio and Hon. Tajudeen Abbas have sustained the practice. But because the administration of President Bola Tinubu inherited the 2023 budget, attempts to fully implement it has brought in a novel practice, where three budgets would be running concurrently.

The journey towards having three appropriation acts being implemented at the same time, however, began penultimate Tuesday, when the lawmakers convened in plenary to consider the requests from the President. Tinubu had forwarded two bills to the House in a letter, which was read by Speaker Abbas.

The bills are: A bill to amend the Appropriation Act 2023, to further extend the implementation of the capital aspect of the Appropriation Amendment 2023 from 30th June 2024 to 31 December 2024 and for related matters, and A bill for an Act to amend the supplementary Appropriation Act, 2023 from June 2024 to 31 December 2024 and for related matters.

Trouble, however, started after the Leader of the House, Hon. Julius Ihonvbere (APC, Edo) led the debate for the consideration and passage of the bills and the motion was seconded by Hon. Kingsley Chinda. Ihonbvere, in leading the debate, stated that the amendment is critical to make provision for the completion of critical capital projects and urged his colleagues to support it.

But surprisingly, immediately after his presentation, the Minority Leader, Hon. Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers), who had earlier seconded the motion was the first to raise an objection.

He expressed reservations about the propriety of accelerating the passage of the bills, saying the application for extension is also coming with a request for extension for the supplementary appropriation.

According to him, the principle of the bill to complete critical capital projects and the multiplicity of budgets, defies the doctrine of process and procedures. He suggested that the bill be stepped down and that the House should capture the critical capital projects in the 2024 supplementary budget.

His words: “We cannot deny the fact that capital projects are important to the country and all of us that is why we may not oppose this, so that the capital projects can continue.

Currently, we have three budgets running and we are still expecting the 2024 supplementary budget from the President. One of the greatest undoing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is the lack of a budget circle. The process of having four budgets running is not too good.”

Reacting to Chinda’s observation, Speaker Abbas reminded the lawmakers that President Tinubu is using the right channel to ensure the amendment for the smooth running of the government and for the procedure to remain legal. He, therefore, urged members to support the second reading of the bill.

The minority leader’s submission drew loud applause from his colleagues but the speaker still appealed that the bills be passed to enable the executive to implement the budgets.

In his intervention, Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa (APC, Kano), aligned with the observations made by Hon. Chinda but urged his colleagues to approve the President’s request and extend the life span of the budget.

According to him, the House needs to pass a message to the presidency on why they should put their acts together and stop the current practice. “People out there will have questions and we must rise to the occasion.

We have two budgets running concurrently. That may be legal, but moral questions will always be raised. I am in support of the amendment, but we must send a signal that not everything must fly. Fortunately for us, the leader of government is one that we all trust.

The matters raised are important to all Nigerians,” Doguwa said. The lawmaker called on his colleagues to set aside all sentiments and politics as it was glaring that the procedure of presenting the bill would not work as intended as multiple budgets cannot run concurrently. He further called for the adoption of moral justification as representatives of Nigerians.

He, however, appealed for understanding on the part of members to allow the second reading of the bill. Similarly, Hon. Sada Soli (APC, Kano) submitted that approving the two bills will not be counterproductive and urged his colleagues to eschew party affiliations and other sentiments and support the bills.

Soli argued that the only way to extend the supplementary budget is by seeking to amend and extend the main budget. The two lawmakers were, however, rebuked by a majority of the lawmakers on the floor with shouts of “no, no, no!” Again, Abbas appealed to members to allow the passage of the extension of the capital component of the budget to allow for procurement of items contained in it, which he said are more security-related items.

Following the insistence of the majority of the lawmakers and the near rowdiness of the plenary, Speaker Abbas called for a closed-door session to enable members to discuss the matter.

The House on resumption from the executive session, the speaker affirmed that it had noted the concern of members and agreed that the leadership will get in touch with President Tinubu to relay the concerns and extract his commitment to proper implementation of the 2024 budget.

He said the concern on the 2023 supplementary budget was also noted and it was agreed for its extension in order to ensure that the security agencies continue to fight insecurity seamlessly.

The bill was voted on, approved for second reading and referred to the House Committee on Supply. Confirming the passage of the bills, the spokesperson of the House, Hon. Akin Rotimi, disclosed that “the executive session saw extensive discussions, with members from both sides of the aisle contributing their perspectives and suggestions.”

He added: “Following these deliberations, the House, in its collective wisdom, dissolved into the Committee of Supply to debate the various clauses in the money bills, all of which were carried. Subsequently, the House reverted to plenary, where the bills were read for the third time.”

Rotimi further said the extension of the implementation period for both budgets was “a decision made with the nation’s best interests in mind, particularly focusing on national security and economic stability. Thus, the passage of the money bills followed diligent legislative action and met all legislative requirements.”

According to him, “the 10th House of Representatives has continued to stand out as the most diverse Assembly since the inception of the 4th Republic, with representation from eight political parties and approximately 75 per cent new members. This vibrancy has led to commendations for the quality of debates and resolutions, highlighting the legislature’s independence, while maintaining a cooperative relationship with the executive branch.

“It is also to the credit of the speaker, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen that the House is inclusive of all shades of opinion, while building consensus on sensitive matters. In view of this, the passage of these money bills underscores the unwavering commitment of the People’s House to ensure that the country’s budgetary needs are met without interruption, reflecting the dynamic and responsive nature of the 10th Assembly.