***fixes 28th December for passage
The Senate on Thursday blamed failure to pass the 2023 Appropriations bill as earlier scheduled on some errors in the budget from the Executive end
Indications to this emerged when the budget report was not listed on the Order Paper for Thursday legislative activities.
The lawnmakers had gone into a closed door session shortly after the plenary resumed which lasted for about 15 minutes.
The Senate President Ahmad Lawan in his address after the closed door session said the 2023 Appropriations bill could not be passed as scheduled because the Appropriations Committee could not complete their work on the budget report.
He however blamed the executive arm of government for submitting the budget proposal laden with errors very late.
He also said that the process of cleaning the errors contained in the Appropriations bill was concluded on Wednesday adding that the two chambers have to harmonize the copy to be able to present the report for passage by both chambers on Wednesday 28th, 2022.
Lawan also assured that the impementation of the proposed budget will still commence on 1st of January, 2023.
According to Lawan the passage of the appropriation bill 2023 scheduled for Thursday could not be achieved due to some challenges
“We were not able to receive the report of the committee and the main reason for this is because the appropriation bill came to the National assembly with some problems and when our Committees on appropriation in the Senate and the house started to reconcile the figures of what we have done and what was presented the problems became very obvious they were not easy to deal with.
“Therefore our committees had to start the process of cleaning the bill first. That problem also engaged the executive arm because the problem came from there.
“It was concluded only yesterday and our committee Secretariat are not able to finish processing the budget for us to take today nor tomorrow, Saturday nor Sunday because these are periods that are for festivities, Christmas period. Monday, Tuesday are public Holidays and it I still Christmas Period. “Consequently we can only receive the report and consider on Wednesday, the 28th, that I the earliest. That is next week.
“All the appropriations since 2019 till date had been passed before the end of year. I believe this will be one of the legacies of the 9th National Assembly.
“By the grace of God on the 28th of this month the Senate and the House will all come back to proceed and consider the budget report from our committees. “Secondly, our committee on Finance is holding a public hearing this morning on the finance Bill 2022 and of course the finance bill is the basis on which the appropriation bill 2023 I built.
“We had arranged yesterday that the finance committee will present the report on Finance bill hearing at 2pm today. That of course could not be possible. This is why.
“We also received two communications will be processing yesterday, supplementary budget 2022 and of course Ways and Means. So our committees on Appropriations, finance, water resources, agriculture and works and housing will be processing the bills from today in the respect the Senate will adjourn. immediately.
“Our committees will take the action they are supposed to take and therefore those reports would also be available to us on Wednesday 28th, December, 2022.
“That day will be a very heavily loaded day. I am sure we will be able to deal with all the issues that Wednesday and our colleagues who we wish to travel back to continue with the festivities with their families will still make it the following day.
“Let me advise the executive that the bills that have come to us, the Ways and means, the supplementary appropriation, the Finance Bill whoever and invited to Co and explain or any details by the National assembly must do so because it is not our work alone.
“We want to do our work thoroughly we want to understand whatever we are going to deal with and to be based on information and time is of essence just as we are going to sacrifice part of our festive period to be back here nobody should give us the excuse. They should be available with every necessary information.”