Nigerians have reacted furiously to the approval of N70 billion for the National Assembly to ‘support new members’.
These are contained in the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Bill considered by the House of Representatives on Thursday during plenary.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu forwarded a bill to amend the 2022 Supplementary Act to the National Assembly. The supplementary Bill had earlier been passed by the ninth assembly.
In the letter to the lawmakers, he requested the extraction of N500 billion out of the N819 billion supplementary budget to fund the palliatives to mitigate the impact of petroleum subsidy removal.
Details of the bill
-N500 billion for palliatives and other capital expenditures to cushion the effect of the recent subsidy removal policy;
– N185,236,937,815 to the Ministry of Works and Housing to alleviate the impact of the severe flooding experienced in the country in 2022 on road infrastructure across the six geopolitical zones;
-N19,200,000,000 to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to ameliorate the massive destruction to farmlands across the country during the severe flooding experienced last year;
-N35 billion to the National Judicial Council;
– N10 billion to the Federal Capital Territory Administration for critical projects; and
-N70 billion to the National Assembly to support the working conditions of new members.
It is, however, not clear if the N70 billion is part of the N281 billion provided in the 2023 budget for the National Assembly.
The disclosure has since generated reactions from Nigerians on social media:
70 Billion for National Assembly to support lawmakers?
Someone should pls tell me this is not true?
— #AsiwajuOladimeji (@AsiwajuOladimej) July 14, 2023
I’m even more worried for the 70 billion allocation to the legislators. For what exactly!?? For what!?? What have they done!!???? Majority of these legislators have been at the National Assembly for over 4 years, rich and comfortable. What Palliative is the Federal Government…
— FS Yusuf (@FS_Yusuf_) July 14, 2023
National Assembly gets ₦70billion for what?
National Judicial Council gets ₦35billion for what? pic.twitter.com/ND3h2XqSc9
— Man of Letters. (@Letter_to_Jack) July 13, 2023
Loan of about 800B taken for subsidy removal 500B goes to party faithfuls under the guise of monthly stipend,70B for national assembly for the approval, 30B to grease the palms of the judiciary,the remaining to finish work already commissioned by Buhari but actually not finished
— Hamma (@HAHayatu) July 13, 2023
National Assembly that are less than 500 in numbers are been given 70 billion Naira as support
So each lawmaker gets 140 million naira bribe in the name of support.. Meanwhile Nigerians have 120 million people living in poverty..
Failed state
— Chief Ikukuoma (@IkukuomaC) July 13, 2023
When we told people to focus on the quality of people they elect into the National Assembly, they didn’t listen. We focused more on who becomes the President and Governors. Law makers are as important as others but Nigerians will never get it https://t.co/gZCThvdedb
— Foundational Nupe Lawyer (@Egi_nupe_) July 13, 2023
Judiciary got more than Agriculture in the supplementary budget proposed to the National Assembly, and tomorrow BAT will tell you that, he has declared state of emergency on food security.
— Abdul-Aziz Na'ibi Abubakar (@jrnaib2) July 14, 2023
