PDP: Budget Skewed to Serve Interest of the Rich

PDP: Budget Skewed to Serve Interest of the Rich

APC expresses confident of early

Passage

Chuks Okocha and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday alleged that the 2020 budget is skewed to serve the interest of the opulent, as projects that have direct bearing on the well-being of the masses were not substantially accommodated in the overall expenditure profile.

This is coming as the All Progressives Congress (APC) has expressed confidence over the early passage of the 2020 budget.

The main opposition party also lamented that the N10.7 trillion budget presented by President Muhammadu Buhari to the National Assembly will further impoverish Nigerians and mortgage the future of the nation.

The party, therefore urged the National Assembly to redirect the fiscal proposal to serve the interest of majority of Nigerians.

The party, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, kola Ologbondiyan noted that the core of the budget remains hazy, showing streaks of padding, fraudulent duplications, replete with false performance indices, deceptive projections and inexplicable expenditure assertions, which create openings for continued looting of the national patrimony by leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and persons close to the Presidency.

PDP insisted that it is inexcusable that despite the huge natural resources at President Buhari’s reach, he articulated a N10.7 trillion budget that is completely lacking in concrete wealth creation strategy but relies on further squeezing of Nigerians through excruciating taxes, levies and agonizing tolls.

The party described as unacceptable that the budget is skewed to serve the interest of the opulent.

The PDP said that such cannot happen under the Atiku Abubakar’s economic recovery blueprint for which Nigerians voted massively the PDP in the 2019 presidential election.

The party also criticised the Buhari administration for not being transparent in the mammoth allocations for alleged vague projects, particularly the ministries of works and housing as well as transportation, where allegations of diversion of public funds were endemic in the last budget.

On its part, the APC has expressed confidence over the early passage of the 2020 budget

The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu, in a statement issued yesterday also welcomed the commitment of both the executive and legislative arms to ensure budget passage is returned to January-December cycle.

The ruling party noted that the proposed 2020 budget is targeted at consolidating on the gains the current administration has made in revamping power, rail and road infrastructure; diversification and retooling the economy; social intervention programmes targeted at the poor, among others.

The party, therefore, congratulated the President and all APC members on the early presentation of the proposed 2020 Budget of a record N10.33 trillion naira which it said surpasses the N8.916 trillion budgeted for 2019.

Issa-Onilu stated, “we congratulate the leaders of the two chambers of the 9th National Assembly, Senate President Ahmed Lawan and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila for creating a convivial environment for the budget presentation exercise, a welcomed departure from the usual tensed and adversarial atmosphere of the previous four years.”

The party spokesman said it was confident that the patriotic disposition of the leaders and members of the 9th Assembly would ensure a cordial relationship with the executive arm, which would surely translate to good governance and proper implementation of the administration’s next level plans for Nigerians.

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