Chief Imam Backs Buhari’s Stand On 2016 Budget

SAN FRANCISCO, April 01, (THEWILL) – The Chief Imam of Bida Road Central Mosque in Kaduna, Malam Mohammad Nafi'u, on Friday supported the stand of President Muhammadu Buhari not to assent to the 2016 budget without scrutinising its content.

Nafi'u said, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna that, it would be “huge mistake for the President to assent to the budget blindly.”

“President Buhari should not be in a hurry to assent to it, he should carefully study the budget so that padding issue would also be avoided.”

According to him, it is important for the National Assembly to provide the President with all the details contained in the budget before signing.

This, he added, was necessary to not only avoid padding, but also allow the administration have full knowledge of what was approved by the legislators. Nafi'u said Nigeria is in the era of change; as such everything must be done transparently, to avoid suspicion.

The chief Imam expressed full support to the administration of President Buhari, saying that so far it had made significant impact in its anti corruption war, fight against insurgency, and reviving Nigeria's image abroad.

“We have to be patient with the present government, you can't change the system in one year, it has to be a gradual process,” Nafi'u said, even as he urged Nigerians to pray for peace, stability and economic revival of the country.

NAN