Jonathan Defers Budget Presentation

ABUJA, Dec 13, (THEWILL) - President Goodluck Jonathan has postponed his presentation of the 2011 Appropriation Bill to the National Assembly to December 15.

The National Assembly had approved Tuesday, December 14 for the presentation in line with the President’s earlier request but Chairman, House Committee on Rules and Business, Honourable Ita Enang today confirmed that the presentation was moved for 'cogent' reasons.

Enang said that the leadership of the National Assembly had been informed that the presentation will come up on Wednesday and that the postponement was for ‘cogent’ reasons.

Recall that the House of Representatives had warned that it would not pass the 2011 Appropriation Bill unless the budgets of 32 corporations, government owned agencies and companies whose budgets do not pass through the parliament are forwarded to the National Assembly for consideration before the end of December. Deputy Speaker, Hon. Usman Bayero Nafada, had announced the decision of the House after the resolution to receive the President in a joint session was adopted last week. The parastatals are Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and the National Clearing and Forwarding Agency. Others are the Nigeria Unity Life (NUL), Nigeria Airspace and Management Agency (NAMA), Nigerian Shippers Council, National Maritime Authority (NMA), Raw Materials Research Council and Development, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), National Sugar Development Council and Nigerian Postal Service. Also among the 32 are Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigeria Mining Corporation, Nigeria Re-Insurance, Niger Dock Plc, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Insurance Corporation of Nigeria (NICON) and Nigerian Telecommunications (NITEL). The rest are National Automotive Council, Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), National Communication Commission (NCC), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS); Federal Inland Revenue Service and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).