Reps seek N373m virement to NASS Library Trust Fund

The House of Representatives is seeking the urgent virement of N373 million for the National Assembly e-Library and Dashboard provided in the 2022/2023 Appropriation Acts as take-off grant for the National Assembly Library Trust Fund.

While N255 million is for National Assembly e-Library, N118 million is for Dashboard, amounting to the total of N373 million.

This followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance moved by Gaza Gbefwi (SDP, Nasarawa) at plenary on Tuesday.

Moving the motion, Gbefwi said the National Assembly Library Trust Fund was established by the National Assembly Library Trust Fund Act, 2022 for the provision of library equipment, and for the provision of state-of-the-art library equipment and other related facilities for the retraining of legislators, amongst others.

He said all things have been set in place for the take-off and running of the National Assembly Library Trust Fund such as the constitution of the board of trustees, the appointment of an executive secretary for the trust fund, among others.

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The lawmaker said in the Appropriation Act, 2022, the sum of N255 million and N118 million was appropriated for the National Assembly E-library and Dashboard respectively while nothing was appropriated for the National Assembly Library Trust Fund.

Gbefwi said the House was “aware that the management of the e-Library and the provision of electronic library facilities thereto fell within the exclusive mandate of the National Assembly Library Trust Fund, and forms the basis for the establishment of the Trust Fund by this House.

“Concerned that any further delay in the in the virement of the sums appropriated for the National Assembly e-Library and Dashboard respectively will impede the smooth take-off of the trust fund and invariably affect the attainment of the objectives of the Act in the 2022/2023 financial year.”

Adopting the motion, the House resolved that the N255 million and N118 million appropriated for the National Assembly E-Library and Dashboard respectively, in the Appropriation Act, 2022/2023 be vired to the recurrent account of the National Assembly Library Trust Fund as part of the initial take off grant.