‘Nigerians will smile soon,’ Reps member says

monjola sotubo

January 4, 2016 3:42 PM

Babatunde, who represents the Akoko South East/Akoko South West federal constituency of Ondo State, also urged Nigerians to be patient with President Muhammadu Buhari.

President Muhammadu Buhari delivering the 2016 budget at the National Assembly in Abuja, Nigeria December 22, 2015.

House of Representatives member, Honourable Kolawole Babatunde has said that Nigerians are in for better days if the 2016 budget is well implemented.

Babatunde, who represents the Akoko South East/Akoko South West federal constituency of Ondo State, also urged Nigerians to be patient with President Muhammadu Buhari.

“The 2015 budget could be said not to have impacted on the lives of Nigerians at all. In the first instance, the Capital Component (N557 billion) which was 16 percent of the budget was too low to be effective. Yet, of this amount, less than N200 billion was released,” he said while speaking to journalists in Akure recently.

“While the Recurrent component of the 2015 budget performed in most cases up to over 70 percent, the aspect that would have brought succour to the Nigerian people performed less than 40 percent. Again, there were so many revenue leakages and abuses of budget processes.

“For me, the 2016 budget is a budget of optimism. For the first time, the country is having a budget that is not only highest in terms of estimates with N6.08 Trillion, but also it’s the most people oriented in the last few years.

“It is an avenue to provide jobs and make funds available for the small and medium scale businesses which will in turn positively affect the economy. There is also the social welfare package. But there is really no point in estimates that are off mark and dysfunctional.”

Meanwhile, the Peoples Democratic Party has criticized Buhari for the budget saying that the president wants to make Nigerian an indebted nation like Greece.

---------------------------

See Pulse Photo-News gallery below:

monjola sotubo