The National Assembly
will not project itself as an opposition to the All Progressives Congress (APC)
led administration by overriding a veto on the 2016 budget, Speaker said Yakubu
Dogara said yesterday. Dogara also questioned constitutional stipulations
reserving the preparation of the budget with the executive arm of government.
He made his comments while he received a delegation of APC elders and
stakeholders from Kwande/Oshongo federal constituency of Benue state in the
National Assembly. Dogara said no matter the level of provocation from some
persons, the executive and the parliament will not have any fight over their
differences arising from the 2016 budget as passed by the National Assembly.
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter budget Speaker, Yakubu Dogara was speaking in
his home state of Benue He said the National Assembly and the Executive would
likely resolve issues surrounding the 2016 budget this week. “We know that as
leaders, our responsibility is not to fight. It is one government and this
government will take the active collaboration of the judiciary, legislature and
the executive to be able to deliver on the mandate,” Dogara said. “We cannot
form an opposition within the same government. The executive cannot constitute
itself into an opposition within the system in the same government, neither can
the parliament, even though it is a bipartisan one.” “As we speak to you, I know that the
executive has sent their observations on the budget, areas they termed “grey
areas”. We have taken delivery of that document, we are looking into it and in
collaboration with the senate, the entire National Assembly, we have arrived at
a decision which I will not announce here because that one is for the ears of
the President only. “It is in the overall national interest, we know that we
have to find a solution and sooner than later, within this week, I believe that
as leaders, having put on our thinking caps, we should be able to come up with
a solution that will address this problem.” The Speaker, according to a
statement by his Special Adviser, Media and Public Affairs, Turaki Hassan, said
the National Assembly was well within its powers to make amendments to the
budget before passing it because the role of the executive stopped at providing
estimates to the legislature which prepares it into an appropriation law. Share
on Facebook Share on Twitter budget Discontent of the delayed 2016 budget is
growing Dogara said that while the parliament is responsible for preparing the
budget, the executive branch of power has a responsibility to prepare revenues
and projections. “Then, the parliament, in exercise of its duties, will make
appropriation in a document called budget. Budget is always a law, it is not a
policy statement and there is no government arm, no institution of government
that can make laws except the National Assembly. “And we have exercised that constitutional right
and privilege which is exclusively reserved for the National Assembly using the
document that is before the president. And as we all know, a law requires the
assent of the president, that is one of the instrumentalities of checks and
balances that democracy guarantees. Dogara went on to express his condolence to
the government and people of Benue state over the “very sad and incessant
incursion” into some of their communities, especially Agatu, while adding that
though it has been subject of many motions on the floor of the House, he was
happy to note that the government had started doing something about that.