Following the second reading of the 2022 Budget proposals by the National Assembly, Senator Jibrin Barau has observed that Nigerian democracy is gaining more experience year in year out in legislative processes.
Indeed, he expressed optimism that the National Assembly we will do better in the appropriation process of next year’s budget.
“We are going to improve on what we did before in terns of diligence that is being applied in terms of processes of appropriation bills since the inception of democracy in 1999 till date”.
Jibrin, who is the chairman of senate committee on Appropriation spoke on Thursday in Abuja while fielding questions from newsmen on the 2022 Budget proposals.
He assured Nigerians that there will be public hearing on the Appropriation Bill.
“It is a very good arrangement where people come to ventilate their views about the budget.
“The Senate President is determined and has asked me to prepare to make sure we hold it this year, which we couldn’t do last year due to Covid-19 pandemic” he said.
Continuing he said “you are aware that the bill was referred to Committee on Appropriations yesterday. We had our inaugural meeting on how to move forward with the processing of the bill.
“We had a very robust and intensive meeting on how to get the process completed within the timetable.
“We are determined as ever to make sure we get everything done before December and hopefully the bill will be assented to by Mr. President so that we can maintain the January-December budget circle, which we started at the beginning of the second term of this administration”.
On public outcry as regards debt servicing, the lawmaker said the general principles of the budget has been discussed extensively during the second reading of the bill, adding that the Committee will go into nitty gritty of the budget now.
