Reps to lay 2022 budget Dec. 14

The House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation says the 2022 Budget proposal will be laid on the floor of the House on Dec. 14.

Rep. Muktar Betera, the Chairman of the Appropriation Committee, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja while meeting with members of the committee.
He said that the committee was proposing to lay the budget by Dec. 14 and consider it on Dec. 15.

He urged members to ensure a critical oversight on the committee assigned to them, adding that they must ensure that they did a clean work as against 2021 budget defence.

He said that members would be reassigned to committee other than they supervised in 2021 budget defence.

“This time we have to rotate, even if you are given committee to head, you have to come with a member, we need to work together as colleagues to ensure thorough job,” he said.

He however said that there was need to design the way forward before the committee started work, adding that the 2022 budget defence would start Oct. 18.

He added that the committees would have to report back to the Appropriation Committee within two weeks, adding that there would be guidelines for every committee.

“The last budget really had some issues, committee must work within their budget.”

On the issue of recurrent, he said that the committee would be more careful, adding that no money will be taken from capital to recurrent or recurrent to capital.

He explained that except where it was necessary, but the committee must justify where they needed the money for either recurrent or capital, so the committee could look for other ways.

“We have to guide the committees on capital, there will be guidelines, we have to be very serious and work within the guideline. We have some issues in the last budget.

“When it comes to budget especially on legislatures we have to look at agencies within that budget. No one with be allowed to take budget where they should not be.”

He said that the committees only had two weeks before the budget would be passed.