The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has urged the National Assembly (NASS) to redirect the 2020 budget to areas that would better serve the interest of majority of Nigerians.

The party gave the advice in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Tuesday in Abuja.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday presented a N10.7 trillion 2020 budget to the joint session of the National Assembly.

Mr Ologbondiyan said the budget as it is would further impoverish Nigerians and mortgage the future of the nation.
“The core of the budget remains hazy, showing streaks of padding, duplication, replete with false performance indices, deceptive projections and inexplicable expenditure assertions,” he said.

These according to him would create openings for diversion of public funds.

“The budget is skewed to serve the interest of the opulent, as projects that have direct bearing on the well-being of the masses were not substantially accommodated in the overall expenditure profile,” he said

Mr Ologbondiyan also criticised what he termed allocations for “alleged vague projects”, particularly the Ministries of Works and Housing as well as Transportation, where according to him there were allegations of diversion of public funds in the last budget.

“Standing with millions of Nigerian youths and women, our party rejects the paltry budgets of N48 billion for education and N46 billion for health and urges the National Assembly to review the allocations in the interest of Nigerians.”

(NAN)