The Senate has rejected the budget of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for 2021, 20022 over unauthorized spending of N1.3 trillion not approved by the National Assembly.
A breakdown of the NDDC Budget for 2021 revealed that N485.7 Billion was spent while N928 .2 billion was incurred in 2022 by the Interventionist Agency for Niger Delta.
The upper chamber also stepped down consideration of the 2023 Budget estimate of N485.7 billion for the Commission
The Senate resolved to set up an adhoc committee to investigate unauthorized spending by the management and board of the NDDC in the last two years
The resolution of the lawmakers follows concerns raised after the report of the Senate committee on NDDC was presented on the floor of the Senate by the committee vice chairman Senator Amos Bulus(APC, Gombe South).
The report generated arguments among lawmakers who argued that an agency cannot spend monies not approved and submit a Budget for approval after spending.
According to Senator Seriake Dickson (PDP Bayelsa West), The 2023 budget is not the product of the duly inaugurated board and management of the NDDC, and as such the budget should be stepped down.
Senator Dickson added that the board members of the NDDC during their budget defence agreed that the budget presented was drafted by the interim management and not by the newly constituted board
Senator Mpigi (Rivers state ) had claimed Senator Dickson was part of the committee when the NDDC board appeared before the committee and he did not raise any objection to the issue.
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But, the former Bayelsa state Governor refuted that he didn’t sign the NDDC budget document presented to the Senate for consideration.
Senator Olamilekan in his submission raised the observation that the agency has started spending the 2023 budget yet to be approved by the National Assembly which is a clear violation of the constitutional provision.
He added that aside from violation of the constitution, the document can not go further, lamenting what the document submitted to the committee contained was only debit and credit of varrious departments of the commission and has no performance of the agency
Also kicking against the budget, Senator Adamu Ailero told his colleagues that there is no need for the upper chamber to consider the budget because the monies have already been spent, adding that NDDC only brought the budget for formalization and as such the senate cannot formalize illegality.
He explained that it is unconstitutional to give approval to an already spent budget.
Senator Ailero thereafter moved for the Senate to investigate the NDDC overspending without authorization of the National Assembly and his motion was seconded by Senator Adeola Olamilekan.
Members of the adhoc committee set up include Senator Yusuf Yusuf (Chairman APC Taraba), Seriake Dickson PDP Bayelsa West, Abdullahi Yahaya PDP Kebbi, Seidu Alkali APC Gombe, Sadique Suleiman APC Kwara, Uche Ekwunife PDP Anambra, and Olubunmi Adetunmibi APC Ekiti
The committee has one week to report back to the plenary with its findings.
(Editor: Ena Agbanoma)
