Operatives of the Directorate of State Service (DSS) and police officers, yesterday, took over the entrances of the National Assembly complex, as President Muhammadu Buhari presents 2019 budget proposals to the lawmakers today.
The security operatives prevented the striking workers of the parliament from gaining access into the complex. The workers have been protesting since Monday over unpaid allowances.
A presidential aide on National Assembly (Senate), Senator Ita Enang, last night confirmed that Buhari will present the budget to the joint session of the legislature today.
Enang, in a phone interview, said the president would present the budget as scheduled, saying the legislature had approved the presentation through a resolution yesterday.
“Yes, he is presenting tomorrow (today). The National Assembly has passed the resolution on the budget presentation,” he said.
When his attention was drawn to the fact that quorum was not formed at both chambers of the National Assembly during yesterday’s brief sitting, he said, “they will come tomorrow (today).”
The president is expected to present a budget proposal of N8.73 trillion as approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on October 24, which considered the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2019 -2021.
A PDP member in the House of Reps told Daily Trust last night that they were ready to receive the president for the budget presentation.
The lawmaker said they would not in any way “ridicule the president” during the budget presentation, apparently responding to insinuations that some members plan to heckle the president.
“We have decided to receive the president. The issue of budget is of paramount importance to the country, so we shouldn’t joke about it. We won’t allow anything like the ongoing strike to prevent us from receiving the president.
“As you saw what happened today (yesterday) on the floor of the House, the majority of members present were of the PDP, and we were the ones that agreed to receive him.
“I want to assure you that we don’t have any plan to ridicule the president in any way. He is our president, and we respect him. Our only problem is the level of implementation of the National Assembly budget.
The security operatives prevented the striking workers of the parliament from gaining access into the complex. The workers have been protesting since Monday over unpaid allowances.
A presidential aide on National Assembly (Senate), Senator Ita Enang, last night confirmed that Buhari will present the budget to the joint session of the legislature today.
Enang, in a phone interview, said the president would present the budget as scheduled, saying the legislature had approved the presentation through a resolution yesterday.
“Yes, he is presenting tomorrow (today). The National Assembly has passed the resolution on the budget presentation,” he said.
When his attention was drawn to the fact that quorum was not formed at both chambers of the National Assembly during yesterday’s brief sitting, he said, “they will come tomorrow (today).”
The president is expected to present a budget proposal of N8.73 trillion as approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on October 24, which considered the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2019 -2021.
A PDP member in the House of Reps told Daily Trust last night that they were ready to receive the president for the budget presentation.
The lawmaker said they would not in any way “ridicule the president” during the budget presentation, apparently responding to insinuations that some members plan to heckle the president.
“We have decided to receive the president. The issue of budget is of paramount importance to the country, so we shouldn’t joke about it. We won’t allow anything like the ongoing strike to prevent us from receiving the president.
“As you saw what happened today (yesterday) on the floor of the House, the majority of members present were of the PDP, and we were the ones that agreed to receive him.
“I want to assure you that we don’t have any plan to ridicule the president in any way. He is our president, and we respect him. Our only problem is the level of implementation of the National Assembly budget.
Tags
Politics