Abuja – The Presidency has reassured that President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration will fully comply with the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act and other extant laws.
Malam Garba Shehu, the president’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity gave the reassurance in Abuja on Monday.
Shehu was reacting to the submission of budget proposals of Federal Government agencies and corporations to the National Assembly.
According to him, the submission of the proposed budgets of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Nigerian Ports Authority and others clearly indicated the president’s commitment to accountability and transparency.
“The transmission of budgets for the MDAs to the National Assembly, particularly those regarding the CBN and the NNPC is clearly unprecedented.
“The President is determined to make the budgeting process more transparent and participatory.
“It is all part of the re-engineering of the entire processes of governance for the benefit of ordinary citizens,’’ he said.
According to Shehu, the President strongly believes that good governance and transparency are integral to the nation’s progress and key to the Federal Government’s programme to revamp the economy.
He said by responding positively to the demand by the National Assembly that MDAs budgets be laid before it for scrutiny, was a clear indication of the president’s commitment to an open, transparent and people-oriented government for Nigerians.
Shehu stated that the demand before now was mostly ignored by past administrations.
The presidential spokesman added that the current administration had also demonstrated its respect for the parliament as a principal arm of government in a constitutional democracy.
“Our hope and expectation is that the National Assembly, acting in the best interest of the nation will allow the immediate operationalisation of the MDAs budgets.
This, he noted was to ensure that the momentum of growth of the economy which had begun to build up, would be sustained,’’ he said.
