The Nigerian Senate has called on President Bola Tinubu to dismiss any head of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) who fails to physically attend the ongoing interactive sessions regarding the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP).
The demand was made during a formal opening of the interactive session jointly organized by the Senate’s committees on Finance, Appropriations, National Planning, Local and Foreign Debts.
Speaking at the session, the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, emphasized the importance of these sessions, stating, “If you don’t plan how to succeed, then you have planned to fail. I, therefore, remind our committee that any serious appointee or any head of any agency interested in the success of President Bola Tinubu’s administration ought to be here.”
Akpabio instructed the Chairman of the lead committee (Finance) to provide a list of all the Heads of Agencies who were invited but failed to attend. He warned that this absence would mark the beginning of their failure in their respective offices.
“Any head of an agency that sends representation here is not a serious person, and therefore, the President must take a second look at such a person’s appointment,” he said.
The Senate President also addressed the pressing issue of Nigeria’s borrowings, highlighting that while they cannot be completely avoided, the current trend is unsustainable. He urged the committees and relevant agencies to devise strategies for increasing government revenue during these sessions.
The 2024-2026 MTEF/FSP is being considered amidst challenging global and local financial and socio-economic pressures on Nigeria. Akpabio pointed out the international impact of events like the Russian-Ukraine war and the Israeli-Palestine conflict, along with domestic issues such as foreign exchange reform and the removal of petroleum product subsidies. He stressed the importance of meticulous economic projections and policies to stimulate employment and economic growth.
The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Sani Musa (APC Niger East), adjourned the interactive session to the following Monday, providing invited agencies with additional time to submit the required documents requested by the committee.
