By Dipo Olowookere
President Muhammadu Buhari has hinted that it may be difficult for his administration to achieve the goals and objectives of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) in the 2019 budget.
Mr Buhari made this disclosure on Monday while signing the 2019 Appropriation Bill into law at the State House in Abuja.
The President attributed this to the tampering with the budget proposal he presented to a joint session of the National Assembly in December 2018.
“Back then, I proposed a total expenditure of N8.83 trillion to the National Assembly for appropriation targeting strategic and impactful projects and initiatives.
“However, the 2019 Budget I will be signing into law today provides for aggregate expenditures of N8.92 trillion. This is an increase of N90.33 billion over our submission.
“This increase reflects changes introduced by the National Assembly. In some areas, expenses we proposed were reduced while in other areas they were increased. There were also certain areas where new additions were introduced into the budget. More details of the approved budget will be provided by the Honourable Minister of Budget and National Planning.
“Of course, some of these changes will adversely impact our programs making it difficult for us to achieve the objectives of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP),” Mr Buhari said at his budget signing speech yesterday.
He said, “Although I will be signing this bill, it is my intention to continue to engage the National Assembly to ensure we deliver on our promises. I will therefore be engaging with the leadership of the ninth National Assembly, as soon as they emerge, to address some of our concerns with this budget.
“We will also look at how to improve the budget process so that, amongst other things, we can speed up budget consideration processes and return the country to the January to December fiscal year timetable.”
The President, who christened the 2019 Appropriation Bill as Budget of Continuity, said his administration’s goal is to “use this budget to move the economy further on the path of inclusive, diversified and sustainable growth.”
Mr Buhari, during his speech, acknowledged the “efforts of the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Minister of Finance, Budget Office of the Federation, and everyone who collaborated and worked painstakingly to produce the 2019 Appropriation Bill I am signing today.”
