Reps did good job on 2025 budget proposal -Deputy spokesman
The House of Representatives has thoroughly reviewed the N49.70tn 2025 Appropriation Bill submitted to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu in December 2024, the Deputy Spokesman, Philip Agbese, has said.
Tinubu had, while presenting the Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly, said the 2025 budget targets a revenue of N34.82 trillion to fund the budget, including N15.81 trillion for debt servicing.
The budget prioritised defence and security, infrastructure, health and education.
Defence and Security are proposed to receive N4.91tn, while infrastructure is proposed at N4.06tn. Health is projected at N2.48tn, and Education is proposed at N3.52tn.
The President said the budget is a commitment to strengthening the foundation of a robust economy.
“As we embark on implementing the 2025 budget, our steps are deliberate, our decisions resolute, and our priorities are clear.
“This budget reflects a renewed commitment to strengthening the foundation of a robust economy while addressing critical sectors essential for the growth and development we envision,” the President said.
Speaking with our correspondent on Tuesday, Agbese, a member of the All Progressives Congress from Benue State, said the various committees of the House have taken time to work on the budget estimates of the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies ahead of the passage of the 2025 budget estimates.
“You are aware that we commenced the defence of the 2025 budget estimates earlier this month and so far, we have done a good job. As we promised, we did our best to ask the relevant questions and where we were not satisfied, we demanded explanations.
“Some of the MDAs made beautiful presentations, others did not. The media witnessed some, if not all these issues, during our budget defence sessions. What was not done in the media spotlight is that we carried out a surgical operation on these proposals in such a way that Nigerians will get value for their money.
“As a parliament, we are aware of the difficulties of the times and there is no way we would approve frivolous budgetary demands. We made this clear to the ministers and heads of agencies that they must look for innovative ways to generate revenue to enable the government to run effectively.
“We also made it clear that we will not approve frivolous demands as proposed to us. They left with this message, aware that with the 10th Assembly, it is never business as usual anymore,” Agbese said.
According to the Benue lawmaker, the House under the leadership of Abbas, will always prioritise integrity while dealing with any national assignment, saying, “From day one, we promised that as representatives of Nigerians, we would ensure that the right thing is done. The budget is about Nigerians and so, anything that goes contrary to the interest of Nigerians will not be of interest to us.”
Agbese called on Nigerians to continue to support the Tinubu-led government in its bid to revamp the economy and deliver on good governance.
