THE Senate on Monday asked the Federal Government to jack up the 2015 supplementary budget from N465.3 billion to N574 billion to accommodate the figures for fuel subsidy till the end of the year.
This came to the fore on Monday as the Senate Committees on Appropriation, Finance and Budget and National Planning hosted ministers and top Federal Government officials in the respective ministries to an interactive session.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Danjuma Goje, who gave the directive during an interactive session on the supplementary budget, said the Federal Government through the Federal Ministries of Petroleum Resources; Budget and National Planning; and Finance must reconcile their records and include an additional N108billion meant for fuel subsidy for October to December 2015.
He said that the Senate would not agree with half measures on the handling of the subsidy, adding that the supplementary budget had to be jacked up to N574 billion from the initial N465 billion.
The committee also asked the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to furnish it with details of the N437 billion which had so far been paid to the NNPC as its subsidy claims, but which was not appropriated by the National Assembly.
With the directive, the supplementary budget will now stand at N547 billion.
The chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Goje, said: “I am surprised that what you submitted was the outstanding payment up till September. We thought we are out to make a change. We do not want a temporary solution and we would not want your submission to stop in September.
“What plans do you have to forestall future occurrence because your submission appeared to me a half measure,” said the committee.
Goje added: “I express my complete dissatisfaction with the way you are treating the subsidy issue. It is obvious there is no synergy between the Budget Office and the Petroleum Ministry.
“Why is it that we have to live three months in a year without making provisions for the subsidy? What you are asking for has been expended because we have gone beyond September.
“Two months after, you did not come to tell us what you owed oil marketers. You just brought a figure and ask us to pass it. Even if we pass this because of exigency of the time, we will not accept it next time.”
But the Minister, Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, agreed that the government would adjust the figures and revert to the Senate.
Senator Goje, however, accepted the plea by the ministers to be given some time to review the budget figures to accommodate the additional N108 billion subsidy claim for the last quarter of 2015.
Goje expressed dismay on the alleged extra budgetary spending believing it was an attempt to create opportunity for the NNPC to continue to deduct its own subsidy claim from source without subjecting itself to appropriation.
Senator Goje, who spoke on behalf of the committee, noted that N413 billion was provided for the payment of subsidy claim to oil marketers, adding that nothing was provided in the supplementary budget for the payment of subsidy claim to NNPC, claiming that such a situation could create a loophole to be exploited by the NNPC to source its subsidy claims from the money it generate.
He said: “I have an issue on subsidy. Intelligent report has shown that the outstanding subsidy as at September was about N700 billion and going by your presentation, you are presenting subsidy due to petroleum marketers as N413 billion. What is the subsidy due to NNPC?
“It appears that the difference between the figures we got through intelligent report and what you have submitted as due to major oil marketers is the one due to NNPC. So, can we say that the NNPC provision of 52 per cent of petroleum product is free because I know you earn subsidy as well and it is deducted at source. It is necessary we find out the amount of subsidy due to NNPC because it appears they are hiding something.”
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum, Jamila Shuara, in her explanation disclosed that the figure of subsidy claim earlier presented was inherited on resumption. She said that she just got the invitation to appear before the Senate Committee on Monday, adding that the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, was in Lagos trying to persuade the major oil marketers to supply the product while the subsidy claim was being worked out.
According to her: “These submissions were made prior to my minister and myself. We took over recently and for the fact that the minister and myself work very closely, we started picking up issues. We are all for change and we will work for change in this country.
“Kindly allow me to pass the microphone to PPPRA boss so that he can give a better understanding of some of the issues. We will repackage the submission properly and we shall re-submit it.”
But her explanation did not go down well with the senators who reminded her of obvious lack of synergy between the Petroleum Ministry and the Budget Office.
The Accountant General of the Federation, Alhaji Ahmed Idris, who was also at the meeting informed that about N274.290 billion has so far been released from the capital allocation for the 2015 budget.
He said that the National Assembly appropriated the sum of N557.378 billion as capital votes for 2015 out of which the office made releases to agencies.
“First quarter, we released N112.039 billion while Second quarter, there was a release of N88.792 billion. There were also some capital supplementations amounting to N73.459 billion. In total, what has been released so far is N274.290 billion.”
The Minister of Defence, Musa Dan Ali, disclosed that the Chief of Army Staff could not attend the meeting as he was in Yola, where there was insurgent attack on Sunday, adding that the Chief of Air Staff was in Pakistan attending a seminar in air operations in line with the directives of President Muhammadu Buhari to end insurgency by the end of the year.
The minister said that: “I appreciate the immense support by the National Assembly in the fight against insurgency particularly in the North-East of the country.
“To achieve the desired result, additional funding is required. The sum of N29,958,865,912 is appropriated for operation Zaman Lafia Dole. The sum of N17,468,992,649 is meant for operational allowance and cash allowance for soldiers in the field. We also demanded for N8,141,434,769 for logistics support of the Air Force including their fuelling. We also have an outstanding balance from the 2015 budget, for the second quarter, which amounts to N4,348,129 billion. We were in serious need for this money so that work will continue towards the deadline given to us.
“Another salary amount is requested because of the recent recruitment to make up what we have in the field. We require N1,987,956,475 as well as additional salaries for soldiers that were not included last year and the Short Officers Commanding the Soldiers that were recruited, amounting to N420,365,830. As partners in progress against insurgency, I pray this Senate to approve the sum of N29,958,865,512 to operation Lafia Dole and other outstanding bills.”
He pointed out that the essence of deadline given to the military to root out Boko Haram was just a time line as according to him, “there are phases in the fight against insurgency.”
According to him: “the first phase, which we have achieved, was to clear the insurgents from taking hold of any part of our country.
“Fighting insurgency cannot be achieved within a day. All we are working for is to ensure maximum security in our country. Ali also requested the Committee to persuade the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to grant waiver to soldiers in the field concerning BVN.
“Majority of our staff in the field cannot access their money due to BVN. I wish the Senate can assist us so that soldiers can get extension through the CBN as the families of our soldiers are suffering,” he added.
Senator Goje agreed with the request to extend the BVN registration to the Armed Forces and added that the CBN should give extension for Armed Forces especially those in the war front so that their families do not suffer. (Nigerian Tribune)
