The Senate is set to finally pass the N8.612 trillion 2018 budget in April after a long delay as the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has ordered the Appropriation Committee to tidy up pending reports from all committees latest by Friday for final submission to the Upper chamber next week.
The Senate has of late been receiving bashing from different segments of the Nigerian public over delay in passing the 2018 Budget, while it resolved just last week to take steps towards redeeming its pubic image.
Since December last year, different committees of the Senate have been working on the Budget, meeting with heads of ministries and agencies which defended their budgets, after presentation by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 7, 2017.
Saraki, during Tuesday’s brief Plenary said: “The Chairman Appropriation Committee should please ensure that by Friday this week, collections of reports from various committees’ ends.
“There should be no more extension for that purpose because the appropriation committee itself, must submit its report to the Senate unfailingly next week”.
Earlier, Chairman of the Appropriation Committee, Senator Danjuma Goje (APC, Gombe Central), had made an announcement on the floor of the Senate via a letter on extension of time for submission of reports by the various committees to Friday.
The two chambers of the National Assembly had before embarking on the Easter break on Thursday, March 29, 2018, fixed April 24 for passage of the budget.
