National Assembly continues debate on 2016 budget today

The debate session took place on Wednesday at both the upper and lower chambers of the National Assembly in Abuja, is said to continue today Thursday, January 21.

Yesterday the lawmakers in the Senate had divided opinions on the financial plan, as some opposition lawmakers in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) asked questions on the financial capacity of the government to fund the budget considering the fall in oil prices and the deficit in the budget with an initial oil price benchmark of $38 per barrel.

However, some legislators from the ruling All Progressives Congress hailed the budget while describing it as a ‘budget of the people’.

The budget debate in the House of Representatives was approached with less passion, as it was commenced by the House’s majority leader.

The debate which came after weeks of back and forth over the status and whereabouts of the budget presented by President Muhammadu Buhari continues.

The total budgetary allocation for 2016 is 6.8 trillion Naira, an increase of one trillion Naira from the revised allocation of 5.9 trillion Naira for 2015.

In the breakdown, 2.648 trillion Naira was for recurrent expenditure while 1.85 trillion Naira was for capital expenditure and 1.475 trillion Naira for debt service.