The House of Representatives Committee on Finance has threatened a zero budget for the National Sovereign Investment Authority in the 2022 fiscal year.
This is due to the agency’s repetitive refusal to present its annual budget proposal to the lawmakers for assessment, which is a constitutional requirement.
The Chairman of the committee, James Faleke who handed down the warning at the budget defence of the committee where the Accountant General of the Federation, Fiscal Responsibility Commission and the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Company were present.
READ ALSO: Reps File N5bn Lawsuit Against Azman Air Over Delayed Flight
Faleke stated that the constitution made it clear that the budget proposal of all Ministries, Departments and Agencies must have the approval of the parliament contrary to which violate section of the constitution.
“The agency was relying on its extant law that its annual budget shall be approved by its board; this is against the constitution,” Faleke insisted.
The Accountant-General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris while defending the budget of the Accountant General’s Office for 2022, stated that N9.088 billion would be spent on the payment of workers’ salaries, the procurement of three vehicles, and refurbishing the headquarters and its pay offices in the 36 states of the federation.
Mr. Idris said the new budget figure is almost a ten percent increase from the N3.711 billion approved by the House for the 2021 budget of the Office as the agency now has new responsibility of paying Foreign Service workers salaries.
He also added that a circular that moved the duty of payment of the salaries, gratuities and estacodes of the Foreign Service officers originated from the office of the President, stating that the N10.470 budget of the agency is for overhead, personnel cost and capital expenditure of the fiscal year.
“N4.341 billion is for personnel emoluments, N4.747 billion is for Foreign Service and N629.6 million is for overhead cost.
N28 million is meant for the refurbishment of offices, N30 million is for cleaning and fumigation of dilapidated state offices while N752.831 million is for overhead cost and N42 million for purchase of three operational vehicles,” Idris added.
