We’re seriously broke, House of Representatives laments to Buhari
- The House of Representatives in Nigeria has given a pitiable report on its financial standing
- Lawmakers on Thursday, March 11 wailed over the green chamber's apparent poverty
- In fact, the spokesman of the House, Benjamin Kalu, said the lower chamber at the moment cannot perform some of its duties due to the situation
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Strange to hear, Nigeria's lower legislative body, the House of Representatives, on Thursday, March 11, lamented that it is seriously bankrupt.
The spokesman of the House, who happens to be an All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker from Abia, Benjamin Kalu, made this disclosure to newsmen on Thursday, Premium Times reports.
Kalu claimed the present financial state of the green chamber is making it unable to carry out its constitutional functions, apart from not being able to meet thrice a week as required by law.
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The lawmaker explained that the appropriation that was made for the running of the National Assembly earlier is low now considering Nigeria's current economic reality.
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He, therefore, stated that there is a crying need for the executive arm of the federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari to do an upward review of the budget.
The spokesman noted that it is painful to observe that the House is in penury but still makes concerted efforts for agencies to run smoothly.
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In his words:
“This is the fact. Until Nigerians believe that the appropriation that was made for the running of the National Assembly which was done when the exchange rate of naira to dollar was 180 is less now than what it used to be.
“We appropriate for agencies to run effectively and yet, we are in penury trying to run our own constitutional mandate, it is a disservice to Nigerians and the poor budget of the parliament is a disservice to Nigerians.”
Earlier, some investigations had revealed that the lack of funds was a chief reason the Senate and the House of Representatives had been struggling to meet twice a week.
Some senators who spoke with Guardian alleged that the delay of the ministry of finance in paying lawmakers' allowances and other entitlements is another stumbling block.
Onyirioha Nnamdi is a graduate of Literature and English Language at the University of Lagos. He is a Politics/Current Affairs Editor who writes on news and political topics for Legit.ng. He brings into his reporting a wealth of experience in creative and analytical writing. Nnamdi has a major interest in local and global politics.
Source: Legit.ng
