Reps in rowdy session over supplementary budget

bibing

President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for additional borrowing of N1.6 trillion to finance the 2015 budget, yesterday, led to a shouting war in the House of Representatives between members of the All Progressives Congress, APC and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The shouting war was exacerbated by the President’s claim that an additional N465.6 billion was required to fund subsidy payments, an action that drew disdain from PDP members who said that the APC had before the election decried the payment of subsidies to oil marketers.

PDP members also raised concern that the funds being requested by the President had already been expended, saying the letter was essentially to cover the hole drilled by the President.

Leading the debate on the President’s request, House Majority Leader, Femi Gbajabiamila, had appealed to members to approve the President’s request irrespective of party lines to empower the government in the war against Boko Haram insurgency and to enable it settle petroleum marketers as the country was facing fuel scarcity that was biting hard on Nigerians.

His assertion was supported by among others, Mohammed Monguno, APC, Monguno/Marte/Nganzai, Borno State; Zakari Mohammed, APC Baruten/Kaima, Kwara State and Mohammed Kazaure, APC Kazaure/Roni/Gwiwa/Yankashi, Jigawa State.

Kazuare had added that “we need the people to support anything President Buhari brings to the House.”

The Minority Leader, Rep Leo Ogor, was, however, unfazed as he pointed to a breach of parliamentary procedure in the President’s request, arguing that the government had already spent money on All Africa Games which had since been concluded before the request was sent to the parliament.

Besides, Ogor said he supported the money on security to fight the insurgency in the North but picked holes with the issue of subsidy, noting that the APC, as an opposition party, had kicked against subsidy claims which the party said then was a fraud, wondering at which point the party changed position.

He also queried why N413.3 billion should be paid as fuel subsidy when the price of oil had fallen sharply as he then proposed that all relevant House committees rigorously interrogate the President’s request.

As he spoke, Gbajiabiamila raised a Point of Order to demand that Ogor withdraw his comment that the APC had in the past described fuel subsidy as a fraud.

Rowdy session

The demand turned the chamber into a rowdy stage upon the sharp division between the APC and the PDP members, forcing Speaker Yakubu Dogara to intervene to the fact that he was not aware of any official position of the APC kicking against fuel subsidy. The speaker added that President Buhari had recently said that he would not remove the subsidy.

But insisting on his position, the Minority Leader said the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, remains the voice of the government of the day. This did not got down well with APC members who then shouted at him to sit down, an action that also spurred the PDP members to urge him on. Speaker Dogara again intervened and compelled Ogor to take his seat.

Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, PDP, Isiukwuato/Umunneochi, Abia State, said the budget of 2015 had not been implemented up to 30 per cent, saying: “If we pass this supplementary budget, are they (APC) going to implement it? It is not about APC or PDP.”

The Minority Whip, Yakubu Badeh, on his part said the House was in support of anything that would remove suffering on Nigerians and that the PDP was in support of the subsidy in as much as it would impact positively on the common man.

He also said that the House should monitor how the subsidy money was spent so that the people would have value for their money.

Upon the submissions, Dogara put the question as to whether the bill on the supplementary budget should be read the second time with a resounding yea from the majority of the members with no shouts to the contrary.

Source: Vanguard