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| President Muhammadu Buhari |
•‘I
cannot single-handedly fight corruption’ •Saraki, Dogara reject ₦10bn official quarters
Fear has gripped top
officials of the Budget Department of the National Planning Ministry as
President Muhammadu Buhari returns to the country this week after spitting fire
abroad over alleged padding of the 2016 Budget.
Vanguard
report continues:
This
came to light on a day the President pointed out that all Nigerians must join
him to prosecute the on-going war against corruption as he could not fight it
alone.
It
was also learnt, at the weekend, that Senate President Bukola Saraki and
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, have rejected
the N10billion voted in the 2016 budget for the building of new official
quarters for them, opting for a cut in the vote.
Angry Buhari
Presidency
sources confirmed to Sunday Vanguard that Buhari was very angry over the alleged doctoring
of the budget by some bad eggs in the ministry, thereby trying to stifle his
administration’s efforts to reflate the economy.
In
the meantime, it was learnt that the President has ordered detectives to
fish out those who orchestrated the padding of the budget for immediate punishment
on his return to Abuja.
Based
on the directive, according to the sources, plain clothes detectives had
since swooped on the Department of Budget and some ministries, departments and
agencies to fish out those implicated in the budget imbroglio.
The
sources claimed that more heads may roll over the addition of figures to the
original budget proposals, presented by Buhari to the National Assembly,
by officials believed to be opposed to the zero-based budget system adopted by
the President to cut costs and boost capital expenditure to 30 percent.
Those
who altered the budget were said to have opted for the “envelope system”, which
arbitrarily allocates a fixed but unrealistic sum to each unit, sometimes
higher or lower than what is actually required.
The
detectives were said to have been scanning the initial documents used for
the 2016 Budget and comparing them with the “padded budget documents”, which caused
a spat between the Presidency and the National Assembly.
A
source in one of the ministries, where the detectives were sighted, pointed out
that the men had been examining documents for two days running.
“For
two days, the detectives have been working in the Budget Department but we do not
really know what exactly they picked out”, a top official in the Planning
Ministry said.
“But
the detectives did not molest any of the staff of the ministry. They
went straight to look at the records and began to input data into
their own computers”.
Already,
Buhari has fired the Director of Budget and appointed a new one while moving
the Budget Department from the Finance Ministry to National Planning.
Some
of the Budget Department officials, who were moved to other MDAs, were also
being questioned by the detectives.
Last
week, in faraway Saudi Arabia, Buhari exploded, while addressing the Nigerian
community, and vowed to severely punish those who cooked the budget to
embarrass his government.
The
budget row between the Presidency and the NASS has, however, been thawed,
raising hope it could be passed as early as next month.
I cannot fight corruption alone — Buhari
In
a related development, Buhari, yesterday, said he could not single-handedly
fight-corruption, pointing out that it is a collective responsibility of
Nigerians.
Speaking
at the 25th convocation ceremony of the Federal University of Technology,
Minna, Niger State, the President said he did not have the magic wand to
effect the change he is championing alone, adding that youths are the greatest
resource and pillar of the nation, and that, with them, all hope is not
lost yet.
“As
you all know, our administration came to power on the promise of change.
Changing our society from the path of corruption in high and low places is a
task that we all must be committed to. It is not a magic wand that a single
leader alone can use. We all have to believe in it and we have to work for
it and inculcating the virtues of honour integrity and discipline are
essentially the duty of the family and educational institutions,” he said.
“Nigeria
still has hope and promise because our youths -vibrant, energetic and
creative citizens – are the greatest resource and pillar of this country.
“Today
may be rough and tough but tomorrow will be better. I have hope because I see
in our youths inventors, problem solvers and leaders that will one day make
Nigeria greater than my government will make it.”
The
President, represented by the Director of Science and Technology in the Federal
Ministry of Education, Sandy Gandy Chega, stated that changing the country from
the path of corruption in high and low places is a task that all Nigerians must
be committed to.
Buhari then
called for value re-orientation of higher education, stressing the need to
improve the standards of education in the country.
“We
need value re-orientation as far as the pursuit of higher education is
concerned. Our education would be meaningless if it does not advance the cause
of humanity. We want to build a Nigeria where citizens with competencies would
be proud of themselves and their country can attain heights because of what
they know and can deliver.”
Saraki, Dogara reject ₦10bn
official quarters
Last
night, it was learnt that Senate President Saraki and Speaker Dogara, may have
rejected the ₦10bn included in the 2016 budget proposals of the Ministry
of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the building of their official quarters.
Saraki
and Dogara, according to National Assembly sources, last week, agreed that the
cost of the buildings should be reduced to one billion Naira each, to save the
country N8billion. They were said to have informed the chairmen of the
Committees on FCT in both chambers to reflect the decision in their report to
the Committees on Appropriation.
The
Senate President and Speaker said in view of the economic situation in the
country and the need for public officials to be frugal, building houses worth ₦6bn
and ₦4bn respectively for them was insensitive.
The
two top legislators said the FCT ministry should scale down the cost of the
projects or forget the idea until after their tenure.
The Senate President was
living in his personal house in Maitama area of Abuja until a fire incident
last year forced him to relocate to an official guest house while Dogara stays
in rented apartment.
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