The House of Representatives this Saturday, passed the 2024 Appropriation Bill with an aggregate expenditure of twenty eight trillion naira (N28,777,404,072, 861) in line with its constitutional powers.
The budget as passed by the Green Chamber comprises N9,995,143,298,028 voted for Capital Expenditure, N8,768,513,380,852 for Recurrent Expenditure and N1,742,786,788,150 as money earmarked for Statutory Transfers.
This followed President Bola Tinubu’s presentation of a N27.5 trillion Appropriation Bill themed ‘Budget of Renewed Hope’ to a Joint Session of the National Assembly on Wednesday, November 29, 2023. Upon receipt of the proposal, the House at its Second Reading of the bill, dedicated two legislative days to a debate on its general principles before committing it to the Committee on Appropriation for further scrutiny.
As a mark of its avowed commitment to robust consultations on decision making, the Green Chamber held a Citizens Town Hall on the 2024 Budget and Appropriation Process. This heralded a two-week suspension of plenary by the House to pave way for defence of budgetary estimates by the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) before Joint Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives.
The House’s consideration of its Committee on Appropriation report and its passage one month after submission aligns with Agenda 4: Economic Growth and Development of the “People’s House” Legislative Agenda. An agenda that recognises the role of parliament in shaping the economic trajectory and influencing the economic environment.
In a related development, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen PhD, has extolled the dedication, unity of purpose, and willingness of the Members of the Green Chamber to engage in constructive debates instrumental to the legislative outputs recorded in the last six months.
He thereafter reeled out some legislative landmarks attained by the House with the potential to positively impact the lives of fellow citizens. Speaker Abbas recalled that the House has remained responsive and committed in its efforts to ameliorate the suffering of constituents and contribute to Nigeria’s overall peace and development.
The Speaker noted that 500 Motions on pressing matters affecting the people were adopted, while 25 of the 30 Ad Hoc Committees constituted in response to the issues raised, have submitted their reports for consideration.
In the area of legislation, 962 bills have been received since inauguration, out of which 120 have passed Second Reading and are currently undergoing in-depth analysis at the Committee stage. The Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill 2023 passed by the House have also been assented to by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on 23rd November, 2023.
Notable among bills passed in six months are the Electricity Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023, the Federal Audit Service Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023, and the Oath Act (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2023. Other critical bills passed include the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons Bill, 2023, Federal Fire and Rescue Service Bill, 2023, Administration of Criminal Justice Act (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2023, Niger Delta Development Commission Act (Amendment) Bill, 2023, Nigerian Medical Research Council (Establishment) Bill, 2023, Nigerian Peace Corps (Establishment) Bill, 2023 and more recently, the South East Development Commission (Establishment) Bill, 2023.
Other achievements of the House in the last six months include: reviewing the House Standing Orders to incorporate technological advancements such as E-Parliament and to better adapt to changing needs in line with international standards and best practices. The House also unveiled an eight-point Legislative Agenda in November, outlining clear and specific objectives to be achieved in the life of the Assembly.
In the period under review, the Chamber made significant strides in fostering greater collaboration with citizens in key legislative activities. This is evident in the various Town Halls held by the House to harness citizens’ inputs in the development of its Legislative Agenda, Amendment of the Electoral Act 2022, and the 2024 Budget.
Commencement of Sectoral Debates to enable lawmakers engage with MDAs and better understand the unique challenges each sector faces is also a key achievement of the 10th House since inauguration. Notably, all of these are in line with the House Standing Orders and Legislative Agenda.
The ‘People’s House’ notes some security setbacks and tragedies that have befallen the country; with the most recent being the gruesome killing of innocent citizens in the Bokkos and Barkin Ladi areas of Plateau State by hoodlums. The Chamber expresses our heartfelt condolences to the families who lost loved ones and will continue to support the Federal Government’s fight against all forms of criminality through necessary legislative actions.
The House has proceeded on recess and is expected to resume on January 23, 2024.