News
N’ Assembly Raises Its Allocation To N150bn …Presents 2017 Budget Report, May 11
Owing to rising inflation and the depreciation of the naira, the National Assembly, which for years has faced criticism over the lack of transparency and accountability over its budget, has increased its 2017 budget in this year’s Appropriation Bill to N150 billion from the initial proposal of N120 billion.
This is just as the Appropriation Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives would Thursday lay the 2017 budget ahead of its consideration next week.
The Tide source gathered that the 2017 Appropriation Bill to be laid Thursday would include details of the appropriated expenditure (expenditure line items and sub-heads) of the National Assembly, in line with the promise made by its leadership to make public the details of its budget.
Our source, however, could not confirm if the federal government’s budget was increased, reduced or retained at N7.3 trillion as proposed by the executive.
A source in the Senate explained that the legislature had to increase its budget to N150 billion, as it could no longer deploy the pooled resources for services provided in the National Assembly.
“We are opening our budget to scrutiny and since we are doing that, there are more exigencies such as services being provided in the National Assembly, they are getting more money.
“More importantly, now that we are opening the budget, it means we have to account for all the activities: the monies used to clean the House and Senate, for instance. We use cleaning agencies for this, as we do not have civil servants who clean the premises. It is done on a contractual agreement. We also have people fuelling the generators and all that.
“As against what happened in the past, when we just went into a pool of funds and took the money, now there is need to account for every naira that is spent.
“So they had to get the kind of costing applicable for those things, and in the process of getting the official costing for these things, some of these services have increased due to the foreign exchange rate. These include the cost of diesel; purchase of utility vehicle; etc, which have all increased.
“As such, it is even good that we are now accounting for it,” the source explained.
Another source added that it was necessary for Nigerians not to continue to hold on to the impression that the budget of the legislature is for the 109 senators and 360 House members alone.
“The budget is for the National Assembly and its three agencies: National Assembly Service Commission, National Institute for Legislative Studies and the Public Complaints Commission.
“The National Assembly alone has at least 3,500 staff and over 5,000 legislative aides. They are all paid from within this budget,” he said.
The source further revealed that consideration of the federal budget would likely start next Tuesday and may last for at least two weeks.
“Consideration may start next week, and this will be in line with the agreement we had and the speech of the Speaker when we resumed from the break, when he said the National Assembly would pass the details of the 2017 budget, not the summary.
“What this means is that it would take more than three legislative days, at least a minimum of two weeks.
“The fact that the 2016 budget would elapse on Friday does not mean government cannot continue spending. The constitution allows the government to go to the Consolidated Revenue Fund and start spending the equivalent of half of the 2017 budget.
“So there will be no shutdown, they would continue to pay the salaries of workers,” he explained further.
A Coalition of civil society organisations has urged the Federal Government to take proactive steps towards addressing the persistent gas eruptions in Bille, Rivers.
The coalition, made up of the People’s Assembly and Bille Working Group, made the call in an open letter addressed to President Bola Tinubu, and read to journalists in Port Harcourt, yesterday.
Reading the letter, the coalition’s convener, Dr Isaac Osuoka, said that the persistent gas eruption in Bille had led to serious environmental and public health challenges.
Osuoka, also the Executive Director, Social Action, urged Tinubu to establish a presidential task force to investigate and contain the gas leak in Bille.
He also called for the immediate relocation of residents to safe shelters, provision of clean water, food and healthcare services.
Dr Emem Okon, the Executive Director, Kebetkache Women Development and Resource Centre, stated that gas had been bubbling from the ground, creeks, boreholes and hand-dug wells in the community since October 2025.
Okon said that the gas had triggered several fires and explosions, and that residents of the community had reported respiratory problems, vomiting and other illnesses associated with exposure to the emissions.
According to her, preliminary investigations by the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) have yet to identify the source of the gas.
Mr Kentebe Ebiaridor, the Coordinator, Oilwatch International, called for the publication of results from preliminary soil and water tests conducted in Bille for the residents to know the nature and extent of the contamination.
Ebiaridor urged the Federal Government to deploy medical teams to screen and treat affected residents, and immediately commence an independent study on the health impacts of the leak.
He further called for the suspension of oil and gas operations around OML 18 and 24 until the source of the gas leak was identified and the affected areas declared safe.
Ebiaridor urged the government to hold current and former operators of the oil leases accountable for environmental damage on the community.
Another speaker, Dr Bieye Briggs, urged the National Assembly to fast-track the NOSDRA Amendment Bill, 2025 to provide the agency with statutory funding and stronger enforcement powers.
Briggs urged the Federal Government to activate the regional Spill Command Centre, and make the Upstream Remediation Fund accessible for the Bille crisis and other affected communities in the Niger Delta.
The Akwa Ibom State Police Command has banned drone operations and fireworks in Uyo and announced temporary traffic restrictions ahead of President Bola Tinubu’s visit to the State today.
The state Commissioner of Police, Baba Mohammed Azare, announced the measures yesterday while briefing journalists at the Police Headquarters in Ikot Akpan Abia, Uyo.
He said the restrictions were part of security arrangements to maintain public order, protect strategic locations and ensure the smooth movement of the President’s convoy during his engagements.
“There will be total restriction on the operation and flying of drones within Uyo metropolis throughout the period of the visit. Members of the public, drone operators and service providers are advised to strictly comply with the directive,” he said.
The police commissioner also announced a ban on fireworks, knockouts and other explosive sound-producing devices within the state capital during the visit.
He said the measure would prevent panic and allow security personnel to respond effectively to genuine security threats.
The command also announced temporary restrictions on public access to designated routes and locations in Uyo to facilitate the movement of the presidential convoy.
The affected areas are Airport Road, Shelter Afrique Junction, Oron Road, Nung Oku Junction, Mbierebe Junction and Godswill Akpabio International Stadium.
“Motorists are urged to plan their journeys, exercise patience and cooperate with traffic and security personnel deployed along the corridors.
“Members of the public are advised to avoid the routes during the restriction and use alternative routes,” Azare said.
He also urged residents to plan their journeys, exercise patience and cooperate with traffic and security personnel deployed along the affected corridors.
The commissioner said the command, working with other security agencies, had put in place security arrangements to ensure a peaceful and hitch-free visit.
He appealed to residents to understand that the temporary restrictions were necessary security measures and not intended to cause hardship.
Azare urged members of the public to remain law-abiding, avoid restricted areas and report suspicious movements to the nearest police station or through police emergency channels.
Tinubu’s visit to Akwa Ibom is a working visit during which he is expected to inaugurate major infrastructure projects executed by Governor Umo Eno’s administration under its ARISE Agenda. The projects cut across aviation, road infrastructure, tourism, healthcare, land administration and security.
Among the projects scheduled for inauguration are the international terminal building and airport hospital at Victor Attah International Airport, Aviation Village, ARISE Palm Resort, the 14.5-kilometre Nsit Atai–Okobo Road, Ring Road 3, the Command and Control Centre and the AkwaGIS building.
The state government had earlier announced plans for the President to inaugurate projects as part of activities marking Akwa Ibom’s 39th anniversary in September.
The airport projects are particularly significant to the state’s ambition to expand aviation, tourism and investment.
The international terminal is expected to strengthen the airport’s capacity to handle international operations, while the Aviation Village is intended to provide accommodation for aviation workers. The airport hospital is also among the facilities lined up for inauguration.
The road projects are also expected to improve connectivity. The 14.5-kilometre Nsit Atai–Okobo Road links communities in the two local government areas, while Ring Road 3 is designed to improve movement within Uyo and ease pressure on existing roads. The Command and Control Centre, meanwhile, is intended to strengthen security surveillance and coordination in the State.
The Rivers State Ministry of Culture and Tourism has floated a culture content platform in collaboration with digital television group, Multichoice.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara, disclosed this after a meeting with MultiChoice Head of Content Acquisition, Don Dotun Ojon, in Port Harcourt.
He assured that content entrepreneurs and film makers would enjoy the platform by promoting culture and other contents to sell the states tourism potentials.
He said MultiChoice M-net was now open to increase its patronage for content shots on locations in Rivers State, describing the State as one that has numerous potentials for film tourism.
“We were privileged to have Don Ojon with us at the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF) at the weekend in Bonny and he saw, first hand, the numerous sites and opportunities that are open to creatives in the State. After that, we felt it was important to deepen the conversation and he obliged. This is a cheering news for the sector in the State,” he said.
Ndigbara stated that “Rivers State has many more untold stories to tell, many more contents to reel out and the assurances from the M-net Acquisition Manager is an indication that the industry in the state will soon enjoy a new lease of life”.
The Permanent Secretary thanked Ojon for the visit and assured that creatives in the State would grap this opportunity and show the world that Rivers State is a major hub for film tourism in Nigeria.
On his part, Ojon said the visit was to discuss on ways of promoting tourism in the State using creatives and film.
Ojon said although the company has recently been acquired by canal+ France and is undergoing restructuring, he would promote the chances of Rivers State to host the MultiChoice talent factory in the State.
With Asaba, capital of Delta State, being saturated, Ojon said the next port is Rivers State, which he said is capable of building fresh crop of creatives, new locations, new story lines and concepts.
He, therefore, called for collaboration from stakeholders in the State.
Kevin Nengia
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