Zakari Mohammed, Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Education, has attributed the delay in the passage of the 2018 budget to lack of cooperation from some ministers.
Mohammed spoke while representing Yakubu Dogara, speaker, House of Representatives, on the sideline of an empowerment programme organised by Segun Ogunwuyi for his constituents, at Ogbomoso, Oyo state.
Speaking at the event, Mohammed said the 2018 appropriation bill would be ready by end of April.
He said the lawmakers were taking their time because they won’t manufacture figures. “When a budget is laid, it is our duty to ask for detail information because we won’t manufacture figures. That is the problem. I am sure that by the end of April we will have a budget,’’ Mohammed said.
He urged the executive arm of government to work harder in generating more revenue to implement the budget, adding that budget performance in recent times is dropping.
The lawmaker urged the people to re-elect Ogunwuyi for a second term, saying the type of lawmaking template they operated was in consonance with longevity.
“When you go to the national assembly as a first timer, it takes you more than three years to learn the process and by the end of four years you will have nothing to show,’’ he said.
Dogara had on March 21, also said the bill will be passed into law by
April 24.