By Ezrel Tabiowo
Abuja
A mild drama played out yesterday in the Senate following a move by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Rules and Business, Senator Ita Enang, to re-introduce 2014 Budget Proposal of Federal Government Parastatal for consideration on the floor.
The attempt which generated outright disapproval from senators came seven weeks after the National Assembly passed the 2014 appropriation bill into law.
The smuggled document contained 2014 Budget estimates for 52 federal agencies like the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Corporate Affairs Commission, etc.
The 2014 budget document Upon being presented to the senate for deliberation by the Senate Deputy Leader, Abdul Ningi, senators took their turns to object to its consideration.
One of such lawmakers, Senator Smart Adeyemi (PDP Kogi West), described the request as contained in the document as “nothing” but returning the already passed budget to the Senate for reconsideration through the back door.
He said: “To me, this request as purportedly made by the President and presented here by the Deputy Senate Leader is strange and very strange indeed because this is the first time I will be witnessing such a thing.
“We have already passed the 2014 budget several weeks ago and now presenting to us another request to consider budget estimates of some federal agencies believed to have been captured in the original budget total budget estimates passed.”
On his path, Senator James Manager (PDP Delta South), said “Mr President, this is strange. if you remember, these agencies budget estimates have already been treated and considered during the last budget Defence session which eventually paved way for the passing of the 4.6trillion 2014 budget profile by both chambers of the National Assembly in the first week of April.”
Tempers further flared when Senator Eyinaya Abaribe pointed to his colleagues that the Senate by its standing rule (52) “cannot revisit an already concluded issue such as the 2014 budget already considered and passed several weeks ago.”
Mark, in his ruling, directed Ita Enang to withdraw the document for sieving of agencies and parastatal whose budget estimates had already been treated from those yet to be treated.