The National Assembly has passed for second reading a bill seeking to extend the implementation of the capital component of the 2024 approved budget from June 30 to December 31, 2025.
The bill to extend the budget to the end of the year was presented to both chambers on Tuesday for consideration during their various plenary sessions.
The amendment Bill was titled: “A Bill for an Act to Amend the 2024 Appropriation Act to Further Extend the Capital Components of the Act From 30th June 2025 to 31st December 2025 and for Related Matters (HB.2404).”
In the Senate, the debate was led by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Solomon Adeola, who defended the need for the extension.
According to him, the additional time is necessary to enable the Federal Government to complete several ongoing projects captured under the 2024 budget.
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Adeola also cited revenue constraints, noting that limited fiscal resources had delayed execution of various capital projects.
He said: “We must not allow these important national projects to be abandoned due to time constraints.
“Extending the implementation period will ensure value for money and improved service delivery.”
While speaking on the extension of the bill, the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro, called for the need to engage the Ministry of Furnace to know why the capital component of the budget has not been released.
According to Moro: “Unless we take it very seriously with the Ministry of Finance, this parliament will become an embarrassment to itself.
“Even those who have funds to commit to projects will be very unwilling to commit their money to these projects because they fear they will not be paid.”
In his own contribution, Senator Seriake Dickson said: “The government has been grounded.
“Contractors who have done their jobs and committed their resources cannot be paid.
“Maybe there is too much preoccupation with politics and 2027.
“Maybe there is too much concentration on receiving defectors across the country.”
Likewise in the House of Representatives, the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, said the extension of the budget was necessary as the implementation of the 2024 budget has not been substantially done.
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