President Bola Tinubu is engaged in confidential discussions with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, and other lawmakers at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. These talks on Tuesday come in the aftermath of the recent suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi of Bauchi Central (PDP), who accused the executive of deviating from the approved budget on January 1, 2024.
Ningi, who chairs the Northern Senators’ Forum and the Senate Committee on Population, asserted in a BBC Hausa Service interview that the Federal Government, under Tinubu’s leadership, was implementing a budget significantly larger than the one passed by the National Assembly. Lawmakers maintain that a N25 trillion budget was deliberated and approved, not the N28.7 trillion currently being executed.
Despite the suspension of Ningi for three months over his claims during Tuesday’s plenary, he reiterated his stance on Monday that N3.7 trillion remained unaccounted for in the 2024 budget. These developments underscore the ongoing tensions and controversies surrounding budgetary matters within the Nigerian government.
