By Goodness Ekpang
The Senate Appropriation Committee Chairman, Senator Jibrin Barau says despite the failure of three sub-committees to appear before his committee on Friday , the Senate is bent on passing the budget by December after due diligence by the appropriation committee.
Senator Barau, while addressing journalists in Abuja on Friday says, it’s regrettably that the committees that were scheduled to meet with the appropriation committee on Friday failed to do so, but insists that not withstanding, the Committee will give them another opportunity to appear on Monday.
He says, his committee is committed to making sure the budget is pass in December, saying that they will keep to the promise of the 9th Assembly of passing budget in Decembers to enhance January -December budget circle.
According to him, “We are not happy that the sub-committees scheduled to appear before my committee failed to do so, but be it as it’s may, we are giving them tye second chance to come on Monday.”Failure to appear on Monday, we will sit and take charge of whatever they were supposed to do. What it means is that will do the job of the Committee without taking into consideration what the Committee would have done ab-initio.
On why the why the various committees are not spending time with the ministries, agencies and parastatals during the budget defence, Senator Barau said, “Some of the committees have experts among them, and it’s possible they might have analyze the budget proposal before inviting the ministries, agencies and parastatals and where the work has been done thoroughly they won’t be any need to keep them.”
Meanwhile, Senate appropriation committee chairman directed the committee’s clerk to intimate the sub-committees on the need to keep to the timetable as earlier released
