House of Representatives Issues Warning on Budget Delay, NIHSA Gets Monday Deadline
The House of Representatives warned ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) not to interfere with the traditional January to December budget cycle. The House Committee on Hydrological Services issued the warning after Mr. Clement Nze, Director-General of the National Hydrological Services Agency, presented the performance of the 2023 budget and defended the 2024 budget. Lawmakers accused the agency of overstepping the 2023 Appropriation Act by spending beyond the budget and questioned the early full payments to contractors. The committee requested the NIHSA to promptly present a detailed budget to maintain the annual budget cycle.
The House of Representatives has issued a stern warning, declaring that no Ministry, Department, or Agency (MDA) will be permitted to disrupt the January-December Budget Cycle. The House Committee on Hydrological Services conveyed this message following the presentation of the 2023 budget performance and the 2024 budget defense by the Director-General of the National Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA), Mr. Clement Nze.
During the presentation, lawmakers identified various infractions in the implementation of the 2023 Appropriation Act, accusing the NIHSA of engaging in extra-budgetary spending. Additionally, they questioned the agency’s management regarding full payments to contractors for ongoing multibillion-naira projects in the 2023 fiscal year.
In defense of the 2024 budget proposal, NIHSA’s DG outlined allocations of N1.2 billion for capital expenditure, N472.91 million for personnel, and N118.41 million for overhead costs. However, committee member Ahmed Jaha expressed concerns about the delay in presenting the agency’s budget, emphasizing that it should not impede the passage of the 2024 budget before the year’s end, in accordance with President Bola Tinubu’s directive to maintain the January to December budget cycle.
Jaha urged the agency to submit its budget promptly to meet the President’s request. He also criticized the submitted document, stating, “After going through your submission, honestly, this is not a budget document. You expect all of us to sit here and approve? You didn’t explain what constitutes your recurrent.”
In response to various committee members’ observations, committee chairman Pascal Agbodike directed the NIHSA Director-General and his team to re-present the 2023 budget performance and the 2024 budget proposal on Monday for further scrutiny.
Source: Daily Trust
