By Nchetachi Chukwuajah
The Senate has set March 17 as the tentative date for the final consideration and passage of the N58.47 trillion Appropriation Bill.
The Red Chamber took the decision on Friday, January 30, at a special session of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, where lawmakers approved a comprehensive timetable for budget defence, public input, and final legislative action.
According to the approved schedule, standing committees of the Senate will commence consideration of the budget estimates from February 2 to 13, while a public hearing on the proposal has also been fixed for Monday, February 9, as part of efforts to allow broader stakeholder participation in the appropriation process.
Chairman of the committee, Senator Solomon Adeola (Ogun West), said the public hearing would feature a PowerPoint presentation by Wasiu Adeoye, a University of Lagos economics professor, aimed at providing technical insights to guide lawmakers during deliberations.
Also included in the Senate’s oversight plans is an interactive session scheduled for March 5, during which key members of the Federal Government’s economic team are expected to appear before the committee.
Senator Adeola said those to be engaged include the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, and the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu.
He further informed committee members that reports from budget defence sessions conducted by the various standing committees are to be submitted between February 16 and 23, ahead of the Appropriations Committee’s final report to the Senate.
The lawmaker disclosed that the Senate leadership had initially proposed March 12 for the passage of the budget, but added that an additional week was secured to allow for more meticulous examination of the estimates.
Also, hard copies of the budget have been printed and distributed to chairmen and members of the standing committees for the lawmakers’ scrutiny.
The timetable was formally adopted following a motion moved by Senator Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) and seconded by Senator Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia North).
