SERAP Urges National Assembly to Slash 2024 N344.85bn Budget

In order to reflect the current state of the nation’s economy and minimize the expense of governance, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the National Assembly to lower its N344.85 billion budget.

The demand was made by SERAP in an open letter to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, and Senate President Godswill Akpabio. The letter stated that failure to slash the budget would have serious fiscal ramifications and worsen the nation’s debt problem.

Furthermore, the lawmakers were requested by the civil society organization to write President Bola Tinubu a request to present a new supplemental appropriations bill reflecting the lower budget for ratification by the National Assembly.

Additionally, it requested that the Assembly’s leadership quickly release information about the N344.85 billion National Assembly budget, including the projected expenditure breakdown for the N3 billion allocated for the Senate Car Park and the N3 billion budgeted for the House of Representatives Car Park.

The group said that approving appropriations measures that are at odds with the Nigerian Constitution is a basic violation of the MPs’ oath of office in a letter dated January 13, 2024, and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare.

The letter reads in part, “the increase in the National Assembly budget raised serious questions in the minds of the Nigerian people about how the lawmakers are spending their commonwealth.

“The National Assembly ought to be more responsible to the public interest and more responsive.

“Transparency and accountability in public administration is an essential element of democracy. Transparency in the spending of the National Assembly budget would give the public a tool to hold the lawmakers accountable. It would also protect Nigerians from any potential abuses of governmental or legislative power.

“Nigerians have a right to scrutinise how their lawmakers spend their tax money and commonwealth, especially given the precarious economic realities in the country and the impact of the removal of fuel subsidy on vulnerable Nigerians.

“Cutting the N344.48 billion National Assembly budget would be entirely consistent with your constitutional oath of office and the letter and spirit of the Nigerian Constitution,“ SERAP stated.

According to the civil society organization, reducing the budget would encourage the effective, moral, and lawful use of public funds. It would benefit the general people and rebuild trust in the National Assembly.

SERAP also encouraged the National Assembly to clarify the contents of the N8.5 billion earmarked for ‘National Assembly liabilities’ and to identify the nature of any such liabilities and how and why they have been incurred.

Additionally, it requested that the parliamentarians explain why the National Assembly Library’s “take-off grant” is N12.1 billion, while N225 million is planned for the National Assembly E-Library and N3 billion is scheduled for book purchases.

 “The budget of N344.48 billion by members of the National Assembly is a fundamental breach of the Nigerian Constitution and the country’s international human rights obligations.

“According to our information, the National Assembly increased its allocation in the 2024 budget to N344.48 billion. The new budgetary allocation to the National Assembly is over 70 per cent of the N197bn proposed by President Bola Tinubu for the lawmakers in the budget proposal submitted to the National Assembly.

“The N344.48bn National Assembly budget, which is an increase of about N147 billion, is reportedly the highest-ever budgetary allocation to the National Assembly.

“The breakdown of the N344.48 billion National Assembly budget is as follows: National Assembly Office – Senate – N49.1 billion; House of Representatives – N78.6 billion; National Assembly Service Commission – N12.3 billion; Legislative Aides – N20.3 billion; NILDS – N9.09 billion; Service-wide votes – N15.1 billion; Senate Appropriation Committee – N200 million.

“Other budget items include: House Appropriation Committee – N200 million; Public Account committees of Senate and House – N280.7 million, National Assembly Library Take Off Grant – N12.1 billion; National Assembly building (ongoing) – N4.2 billion; and National Assembly Liabilities – N8.5 billion.

“Other items include National Assembly E-Library – N225 million; Constitution Review – N1 billion; and Completion of NILDS HQ – N4.5 billion; Construction of NASC Building – N10 billion; Office of Clerks and Permanent Secretaries – N1.2 billion; and Alternative Power System – N4 billion.

“Other items in the National Assembly budget include National Assembly Zonal Offices – N3bn; Senate Car Park – N3 billion; House of Representatives Car Park -N3 billion; and Furnishing of committee rooms (Senate) -N2.7 billion; Furnishing of committee rooms (House) – N3 billion; Design, Construction, Furnishing and Equipping of National Assembly Ultramodern Printing Press – N3 billion.”

“There are also other items in the National Assembly budget: Design, Construction, Furnishing and Equipping of the National Assembly Budget and Research Office (NABRO) – N4 billion; National Assembly Hospital Project – N15 billion; National Assembly Recreation Centre – N4 billion; Procurement of Books for the National Assembly Library – N3 billion; and National Assembly Pension Board (Take-Off Grant) – N2.5 billion,” SERAP said.