Drama As Minister Fails To Defend N42bn 2022 Budget

The Minister of Power, AbubakarAliyu, yesterday, appeared before the Senate Committee on Power, Chaired by Senator Gabriel Suswan for the 2022 budget defence.
There was, however, a dramatic twist as the minister could not sufficiently explain the sum of N42billion proposed for the Zungeru Power Plant project which was tagged ‘new’ when the sum of N25billion was already budgeted for the same project in 2021.
A member of the committee and Senate Minority Leader, Senator EnyinnayaAbaribe picked holes in the document, questioning how a project which already gulped N25billion was tagged new for another N42billion to be expended in 2022.
Abaribe’s observation triggered concerns from other members who became suspicious, given that the sum of N25billion was allocated for the same project in 2021.
Senators recalled that the said sum generated controversy between members of the House of Representatives and Senators who described the amount as outrageous at that time.
Abaribe said, “Mr Minister, why an ongoing project should be tagged new, questioning if the term “new” refers to a new loan for the project or new Zungeru project which has been increased to N43billion in the ministry’s 2022 budget.
The minister while responding, however, regretted the word “new”, and said, it was a typographical error.
He explained that the multilateral loans are handled by the Ministry of Finance but confirmed that the project as captured in the proposed budget wasn’t new.