National Assembly committees are shielding ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) that appear for the 2020 budget defence as the meetings are being held in secrecy. Both the Senate and House of Representatives committees were resolved to collaborate and work jointly to hasten the passage of the 2020 budget.
Senate President and chairman of the National Assembly, Ahmad Lawan had announced that the collaboration of the committees was hinged on the determination of NASS to end budget delays and revert to the January-December cycle.
The National Assembly was on October 15, forced to adjourn plenary for two weeks to pay the way for the MDAs to appear before the committees for their budget defence.
The NASS committees since Wednesday, 16 October, received the Honourable Ministers and other heads of government agencies for defence of the budget estimates of the various MDAs.However, the meetings are holding behind closed doors, just as journalists are barred from covering the sessions.
According to the Senate Standing Rules 2015 as amended, paragraph (f) (1) on open meeting and hearing, states that “each meeting for the transaction of business including the mark up legislation of each standing committee or subcommittee thereof shall be open to the public except when the committee or sub-committee in open session and with majority present, determines by roll call vote that all or part of the remainder of the meeting of that day shall be closed to the public.
In the 8th Senate and going by the previous budget defence meetings, the interface between the committees and MDAs has always been conducted openly. It has never been carried out behind closed doors.
This is coming even as the 9th NASS led by Lawan has consistently assured that it will ensure openness, transparency, and truthfulness in all its dealings.
Also, Lawan insisted that the 9th National Assembly would not be a rubber stamp to the executive arm of government.
On the ongoing budget defence by MDAs, Lawan announced that any agency that fails to appear before the committees, on or before October 30, should not come and as such, consider its budget not defended.
Since Wednesday, the committees are receiving the MDAs but the budget defense meetings are being conducted secretly.
It was however observed that several committees that have so far held their budget defense meetings including Public Accounts, Army, Airforce, environment among others did without openness as there was a closed-door session.
According to National Assembly sources, the committees devised the new method of holding the budget meetings secretly to shield the MDAs.The source said NASS leadership promised President Muhammadu Buhari that it will jettison any move to leak information on the budget of the MDAs.
This, it was informed is planned to be achieved by not allowing newsmen to have access to the committee meetings.
Also, it was learned that some of the heads of agencies that have appeared for budget defence were not properly quizzed, as it has to be the norm, “the lawmakers will only shower commendations and allow the ministers to go.”
The spokesman of the Senate, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye, when approached on the matter instead, insisted that the committees were not in any way shielding the executive as being alleged.
Adeyeye in an interview on Thursday, however, assured to liaise with relevant committees to make sure that they hold open meetings and allow proper coverage of their activities.”
It isn’t that they (committees) want to conduct the budget defence in secrecy but serious issues of budget defence, looking at figures, ratifying them, adjusting them don’t necessarily have to be open to the media.”What I am saying is that there is no secrecy but they need to do serious work. If I want to write a paper now, I want to do serious intellectual work, will I be doing it in the full glare of camera? No!
I want us to believe that it is a serious matter. We want to discuss the issues seriously, genuinely and factually.”
The press can be called in but sometimes the Committee needs their privacies to do their jobs. They can at the end of the day call the press to say, ‘this is what we have done. This is what they have done, it isn’t secrecy. Do you want the Committees to do everything in your presence? I don’t think it is proper. Were you there when the Executive was preparing the budget, but the President came here to present it. The budget defence can be done behind the closed door but then whatever has to be done, the best thing is to release it to the public and I think that’s fair enough,” Adeyeye.
Meanwhile, the Senate has distanced itself from the job racketeering scandal allegedly tearing the senators apart.
Senate spokesman, Senator Adeyeye while fielding questions from National Assembly correspondents said categorically that nothing is such ever existed and assured to investigate it.
“I am supposed to give you facts and honestly, I am just hearing about this matter, I will need to investigate, make appropriate contact with the Committee, get the gist of their investigation and also meet with the leadership of the Senate. Until then, I can’t say anything about it. I don’t want to tell you what isn’t correct.”
So, you don’t expect me to come here and give you incorrect information. That’s the truth. I need to conduct my investigation, find out and brief you on it later,” he insisted.
