Update: Buhari signs 2019 budget, faults new projects by NASS

Mathew Dadiya, Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the N8.916 trillion 2019 Appropriation Bill into law and faulted the National Assembly for injecting new projects into the Appropriation Act.

Daily Times recalls that the National Assembly had passed the 2019 budget of N8.916 trillion as against N8.83 trillion presented by President Buhari on December 18, 2018.

The increase of N90 billion in the budget was to cater for security challenges in the country, severance packages for lawmakers and support for Zamfara state.

When signing the budget on Monday, President Buhari faulted the increase in the budget by the lawmakers with introduction of new projects.

Present at the signing ceremony at the Presidential Villa include, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Danjuma Goje, Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma and the Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters, Ita Enang.

Others were the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefuele, Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha.

However, Senate President Bukola Saraki arrived late for the signing ceremony as he arrived the President’s office at 11:17am when the signing ceremony had ended.

Before his arrival, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who represented him at the ceremony, had disclosed that Saraki was coming straight to the Aso Villa from the airport.