Senate President, Bukola Saraki,
on Wednesday, fired at the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), hours after
President Muhammadu Buhari was booed as he presented the 2019 Budget.
In his statement posted on his
official Facebook page, Saraki noted that Nigerians have witnessed stunted
growth in their respective businesses, lost their jobs during the recent
recession and lost innocent citizens to insurgency in parts of the North East.
He wrote: “The last
three-and-a-half years have been eventful ones at the global level and in our
domestic economy. From dips in oil prices to major shifts in the economic
landscape, crude oil production shut-ins and security challenges, the economy
and Nigerians have been directly impacted by these events.
“Many businesses closed down and
many people lost their jobs during the recent recession. In the same period, we
lost innocent citizens to insurgency in parts of the North East, thousands were
displaced, and many lives also lost due to clashes between farmers and herders,
in addition to the general hardship unleashed by unstable economic winds.
“The recovery from the recession
is still fragile. The fundamentals underlying the recovery remain weak, and if
unchecked, can lead to dire consequences. The economy still runs on oil and
very little progress has been made in terms of diversification.
“As a result, the expansionary
budget policy in effect since 2016, which was aimed at raising spending and
stimulating growth in the economy, was not matched by achievable revenue
targets. The corollary is higher and rising deficit as well as a considerable
debt burden, all due to an unsustainable fiscal stance.
“The under-performance of
independent revenues is straining government’s ability to meet its expenditure,
especially investments in critical infrastructure. This further exposes
government to higher deficit levels which have been largely financed by
borrowing.
“To be clear, two scenarios will
play out if we do not deal decisively with challenges to revenue. These would
be to: i. accommodate higher debt with higher repayment costs, which is not
sustainable; ii. reduce the capital budget, which would mean a slow-down in
government investment in critical infrastructure. This, again, does not aid
growth or economy development.
“It is for these reasons that the
National Assembly required that the 2018 Budget proposal and future ones be
accompanied by a Finance Bill, which would give credence to the financial
proposals of government.
“It is one way of establishing
credibility in projected revenues. It is imperative, therefore, that a 2019
Finance Bill is submitted to the National Assembly for consideration and
approval.”
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