On Tuesday, the Senate cautioned President Bola Tinubu against unauthorized spending and recommended that he pursue a supplementary budget for the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative. Led by Senator Jarigbe Jarigbe, the Senate’s Committee on Gas urged the executive branch to promptly submit a 2023 Supplementary Budget to the National Assembly to launch the CNG project. This request followed President Bola Tinubu’s announcement of measures to alleviate the impact of fuel subsidy removal on Nigerians just 48 hours earlier. The lawmakers emphasized their commitment to adhering to the legal framework against extra-budgetary spending.
The committee’s chairman commended Tinubu for his CNG initiative but cautioned that spending taxpayers’ money without National Assembly approval or on projects in the gas value chain without proper authorization would be unlawful. The senators emphasized their commitment to avoiding extra-budgetary expenditure through “Ways and Means” and expressed their readiness to support and provide relief to the public. Jarigbe praised Tinubu’s efforts in revolutionizing vehicle power with CNG.
He said, “The noble initiative would ameliorate the hardship of the citizens. Also, the President needs to come up with a supplementary budget to enable the government to fund the gas value chain, including the provision for CNG infrastructure and CNG vehicles.”
He also stated that the workshops and training for CNG adoption would need to be funded.
“The President should not embark on extra-budgetary expenditure because it would be inconsistent with the provisions of the law.”
Jarigbe stated that the National Assembly, under the leadership of the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, was poised to support the lofty programs of Tinubu.
He said a 2023 supplementary budget would be most appropriate, instead of the ‘Ways and Means’ approach of the previous administration, which had remained a major issue of contention in the Central Bank of Nigeria.
In his Independence speech, the President explained that he would ensure that the hardship of Nigerians was alleviated.
Tinubu had said, “A Nigeria where hunger, poverty, and hardship are pushed into the shadows of an ever-fading past.
“We have opened a new chapter in public transportation through the deployment of cheaper, safer CNG buses across the nation. These buses will operate at a fraction of current fuel prices, positively affecting transport fares.
“New CNG conversion kits will start coming in very soon as all hands are on deck to fast track the usually lengthy procurement process.”
He said his administration was also setting up training facilities and workshops across the nation to train and provide new opportunities for transport operators and entrepreneurs.
