Dino Melaye, senator representing
Kogi-west, says President Muhammadu Buhari had the option of returning the 2018
budget to the national assembly if he was displeased with it.
On Wednesday, Buhari signed the
bill into law. He however, expressed
reservations about some alterations made by the lawmakers.
The president said the national
assembly introduced 6,043 projects and jerked up its budget by 14.5 billion
naira.
He also said they reduced the
allocation for some projects but that he decided to sign the bill “in order not to further slow
down the pace of recovery of our economy”.
In his response, Melaye accused
the president of “trying to whip up sentiments against the national assembly.
He said the lawmakers were not
expected to “rubber stamp” whatever the president passed to them.
“What the president is authorised
to do constitutionally is to present the National Assembly with a Bill; a Bill
is a work-in-progress and not the finished work,” Melaye said.
“The reason the constitution
directs the bill to be submitted to the national assembly is that it expects
the national assembly to vet it and make inputs before passing it in readiness
for appropriation act.
“The national assembly is not
expected to rubber stamp whatever Bill the president presents. If this was the
norm, there would have been no need for the constitution to direct that the
bill should be submitted to the national assembly in the first place.
“The powers and authority of the
national assembly can not be eroded by the presidency. The National Assembly is
not a department of the presidency.
“Mr. President should therefore
refrain from playing to the gallery and milking the naivety of the masses on
the issue.
“In any event, he reserves the
prerogative of refusing to append his signature to the bill passed if it meets
with his displeasure. He is also free to return the bill to the national
assembly unsigned with a note indicating his areas of disaffection.
“I also ask, in the last three
years of this administration: What has been the percentage of implementation of
capital budget? Therefore Mr. President should halt his chicanery and smear
campaign of the national assembly.”
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