At least N121 billion of the N242 billion federal lawmakers approved for the 2019 general elections will be drawn from funds meant to cater for poor Nigerians.

The money is to be drawn from the N500 billion allocated to the Special Intervention Programme (SIP), a fund set aside for the social safety programmes of the Buhari administration. The decision to divert the fund for this use was the brainchild of Nigerian lawmakers who picked on the cash as the best source of funding for the elections, presidency officials say.

On November 7, the Senate approved a N242 billion virement for INEC and other agencies for the conduct of the 2019 general election. Virement means the funds are re-assigned to different subheads other than previously approved in the budget.

While granting President Buhari’s request on the matter, the lawmakers ordered that N121 billion be sourced from the capital allocations of 30 agencies while another N121 billion should be sourced from the SIPs.

Mr Buhari, in his letter to the Senate on July 17, asked the lawmakers to delete self-enrichment projects they smuggled into the 2018 budget to free funds for more important projects. The president also requested that part of the funds that would be recovered after the removal of the corrupt insertions be used in financing the elections. Mr Buhari had accused lawmakers of smuggling 6,403 projects of their own, amounting to N578 billion, into the 2018 budget.

In a letter to the Senate in July, the president said he would not submit a supplementary budget to fund priority projects or the election budget. Instead, he urged the lawmakers to remove their projects so that more money could be available for more important projects.

“Accordingly, I invite the distinguished senate to consider, in the national interest, relocating some of the funds appropriated for the new projects which were inserted into the 2018 budget proposal totalling N 578, 319, 951, 904 to cover the sum of N228, 854, 800, 205 required as noted above,” Mr Buhari wrote.

Social Intervention Programmes To The
Rescue
But in passing the 2019 election budget
virement, the senators acted contrary to
the president’s request.
Instead of approving funding for the
election by removing the frivolous
projects, the lawmakers directed the
president to cut N121 billion from the
special projects meant for poor Nigerians.
A presidency official familiar with the
matter said Mr. Buhari was ‘arm-twisted’
to accept the lawmakers’ action, and was
disappointed that “lawmakers could even
suggest that money should be taken from
the poor to fund INEC”.
The official said the presidency has
remained quiet over the matter because it
does not want to be distracted at this
time with any crisis with the National
Assembly.
If the president implements the
lawmakers’ resolution, the federal
government will be left with far less cash
for the N500 billion interventionist
projects targeted at indigent Nigerians.
Programmes such as Home Grown School
Feeding Programme for primary school
pupils; the Conditional Cash Transfer to
the extremely poor; the N-Power
volunteer Corps 500,000 jobs intervention
scheme for university graduates; and the
Government Enterprise and
Empowerment Programme, which is
essentially a loan scheme handled by the
Bank of Industry may suffer.
Idayat Hassan, the director of the Centre
for Democracy and Development (CDD)
frowned at the action of the lawmakers,
saying it showed the lawmakers always
act in their own personal interests.
“It tells us the nature of politics in
Nigeria,” Ms Hassan said “The politics is
such that the interest of the people are
never consistently followed. It is the
interest of the political class that actually
matters (to them). That is what is playing
out.”
Hamzat Lawal, the chief executive officer
of Connected Development (CODE),
accused the lawmakers of marginalising
the poor.
“Now the National Assembly is dipping
their hands into funds for social
programmes for poor people,” Mr. Lawal
said. “They did not dip their hands into
the recurrent expenditure that pays them
salaries and bogus allowances, that of the
executive or heads of parastatals.
“Now they want to take something that
benefits poor people. It tells you that
democracy as it is today and the rule of
law works for the elites, not for the poor
people.”
We Acted In Nigeria’s Best Interest
But lawmakers said they took the decision
with the best of intention and in the
interest of the Nigerian people.
Sabi Abdullahi, the spokesperson to the
Senate, said lawmakers adopted the
controversial virement proposal for two
reasons.
“We considered two things,”Mr.
Abdullahi said. “One was the ease with
which the virement descision could be
taken. The other is the historical
performance of the social intervention
projects.
“We realised that they (the executive)
have never exhausted the allocation made
to the SIPs in the past years. So we
believed that by viring some amounts
from the allocation made to it in the 2018
budget, we will not be infringing on the
SIP Projects.
“What we did was done with the best of
intention and to find a workable solution
for an urgent national problem. Besides,
all the projects in the budget are targeted
at the poor and other Nigerians and it is
wrong to create the impression that the
poor was targeted.”
Laolu Akande, the spokesperson for Vice
President Yemi Osinbajo, in whose office
the implementation of the SIPs is
domiciled, confirmed that releases for the
SIPs in the past two years have been low.
“The programme got N140billion out of
the N500billion budgeted for it in 2017,”
Mr. Akande said. “In 2016, only N80
billion of the budgeted N500 billion was
released. So the total sum so far released
is N220billion of N1 trillion budgeted for
the programme within the two-year
period.”
The presidential spokesperson, however
added, “The releases so far cannot be a
justification for cutting the budgetary
allocations to the programme.”
When asked if the budgetary cut effected
by the lawmakers will affect the
implementation of the programme this
year, Mr. Akande said that has yet to be
determined.
Buhari And The Social Investment Projects
Launched in December 2015 as part of the
2016 federal government budget, the SIP
is a social safety programmes targeted at
eight million Nigerians, under different
schemes.
In his anniversary speech on May 29, Mr
Buhari harped on the benefit of what he
called the most ambitious SIP in Nigeria’s
history.
He said,”The Social Investment
Programmes (SIP) has been created as a
means to graduating our citizens from
poverty through capacity building,
investment and direct support. The major
strategic objective is to restore livelihood,
economic opportunities and sustenance
for the poor across the country.
“The SIP programmes and projects
include:
a. Home Grown School Feeding
Programme – About 8.2 million pupils are
currently being fed from 24 States of the
Federation with over 75,000 Catering Staff
engaged under the programme.
b. The Conditional Cash Transfer has so
far recorded over 297,000 caregivers and
being trained by 2,495 Community
Facilitators in 21 states. Less privileged
Nigerians are now being paid N5,000
monthly stipend in 9 pilot States of
Bauchi, Borno, Cross River, Ekiti, Kwara,
Kogi, Niger, Osun and Oyo. Eventually the
scheme will cover all the 36 states of the
federation including the FCT.
c. Under the Government Enterprise
Empowerment Programme – About
264,269 loans had been disbursed to 4,822
societies in the 36 States and FCT, while
another 370,635 are awaiting release of
funds.
d. N-Power Job creation Scheme – is
targeted at providing jobs for
unemployed young graduates and has so
far recruited 200,000 youths while the
next batch of 300,000 have been selected,
verified and would soon be deployed
across the 36 States and the FCT.
Furthermore, 20,000 non-graduate
volunteers have also been selected to kick
off the N-Build programme in
collaboration with the National
Automotive Design and Development
Council and the Council of Registered
Builders of Nigeria.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/297556-special-report-how-national-assembly-forced-buhari-to-divert-n121-billion-meant-for-poor-nigerians.html

Buhari will deny anything and everything because of Election .

Leave story

They are partners in corruption .

[Mr Buhari had accused lawmakers of smuggling 6,403 projects of their own, amounting to N578 billion, into the 2018 budget.]

and he sign the budget





a president claiming to be fighting corruption, that can't question the expenditure of the National Assembly..... ....



only good at fighting the opposition

I think Buhari should just take a bow come 2019.
The kind of news we've been getting for some time now hasn't been good.

What is this most you always exonerated this incompetent from all his lack of focus

Just imagine!



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Not new , they also cut the budget for Lagos - Ibadan express way twice, and that of Enugu airport to fund constituency projects and buy landcruiser SUVs for each members without our representatives doing Jack about it. This con men don't care about Social intervening programs like Npower or school feeding. If the budget of the whole country could be delayed for more than seven months, with federal agencies like FRSC and Police salaries and allowances been delayed

Saraki is an enemy of Nigeria

Both FG and NASS are birds of a feather.

Sorry, which poor are you talking about?

You mean same people being paid abstract 5k, snap and deceive you? We are talking about billions here.

Why not use the money for a long term investment to bring the poor out of poverty instead of paying them 5k which is not enough to feed a family for a week?

You should have said lawmakers forced buhari to divert fund that would have gone to some rogues pocket in the name of "giving the poor"

The NASS knew that election has to be funded, they took it from the poor. Now, you know your enemies.

People will think that buhari (sorry, jubril) is the saint here

Everywhere Billions Billions.

Youngbbt:
a president claiming to be fighting corruption, that can't question the expenditure of the National Assembly..... ....
only good at fighting the opposition

It is obvious you didn't read the news. You see headlines and jump to make comments.

Sharrap!!

Fraudulent SIP Program providing kids with noodles and a slice of egg in nylon.

Despite feeding fat on the budget, Saraki and the legislators still want to take a shunk of the SIP funds that benefits the masses. This money funds programs like N-Power, School feeding, etc.

That is why they are campaigning against Buhari. They want Atiku who will allow them loot and bribe them to pass the budget.

Billion Billion!! What are these guys doing with all these money. 1 Billion should be enough for someone in his lifetime! What wickedness! *SPITS*

Nigerians need to wise up, the same way people were shouting Sai baba 3 yes ago they have started shouting Atiku up and down, next four years with nothing to show for it they'll start shouting another name again. When will our youths get sense and realize that APC and PDP are the same thing just different initials. I spit on all of you arguing from thread to thread without using your head. It's time for fresh air APC and PDP have nothing to offer

wellmax:
Saraki is an enemy of Nigeria

Saraki will learn the hard way soon ... he will be shocked

What’s about the current issue at hand. $1bill for military arms? Or are u trying to divert our attention

My problem with Buhari abi ApC is that they never accept responsibility for any decision they take esp when it boomerangs. It is either Nass forced buhari or governors forced Bulgari or ASUU forced buhari .i won't be surprised the day the news caption will be oloshos forced buhari

Stupid talk force ko drag ni.corrupt mofos

Youngbbt:
a president claiming to be fighting corruption, that can't question the expenditure of the National Assembly..... ....



only good at fighting the opposition

You are hungry.

No one can force Buhari to go against his will.. Buhari Even Obj can be lobbied but not pmb

Fraudulent administration

Daboomb:


Fake Post!

Keyamo, as the Director of Buhari's campaign, would never say what is written in that your Photoshoped Poster and it is not anywhere on Sahara reporters.

People like you who "fake" News item, need ot be arrested and jailed ASAP.

It's obvious you're new to the internet

You know nothing



here is the link

http://saharareporters.com/2018/01/04/i%E2%80%99ll-be-fool-say-apc-best-thing-happen-nigeria-festus-keyamo

joeyswift:
My problem with Buhari abi ApC is that they never accept responsibility for any decision they take esp when it boomerangs. It is either Nass forced buhari or governors forced Bulgari or ASUU forced buhari .i won't be surprised the day the news caption will be oloshos forced buhari

Trust me, you don't know what you composing. You just wanted to comment

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