Speaker assures Nigerians on participatory 2024 budget process

By Christiana Ekpa

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajuddeen Abbas has assured that the 2024 budget would subjected to participation of Nigerians.
The Speaker who made the declaration at a one-day capacity building retreat for Chairmen and Deputy Chairmen of the House Committees in Abuja, added that the 10th Assembly was committed to a greater engagement with the public.
He said: “ In line with its mantra, ‘Peoples House’, the 10th House is committed to greater and more transparent engagements with the public. This is necessary for reducing suspicion, building trust and generating support for the work of the National Assembly.”
The Speaker who also announced that the Assembly was set to receive the 2024 budget proposal from the Executive tomorrow, said the House would put up a town hall meeting to engage the citizens on the budgeting process.
“We expect to receive the 2024 Appropriation Bill in the next few days. I wish to state that the House will convene a Budget Town Hall Meeting to enable citizens to make input into the 2024 Appropriation. It is the first time such an engagement is planned at the National level.
“I invite our partners to work with us in preparing for a vigorous and all-inclusive budget process.”
Emphasising the need for timely passage of the budget, the Speaker charged the committees to redouble their efforts at scrutinizing the documents even as they are meticulous about them.
“To ensure speedy passage of the 2024 budget, I charged all committees to double their efforts and finalise all considerations in two weeks.
“However, this does not imply haphazard and superficial consideration of the budget. Rather, it is a challenge to deploy all resources and make the needed sacrifices to ensure we pass the budget in good time for the good of all Nigerians.”