The National Assembly, on Monday, summoned the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu, and the Director-General of the Budget Office, Tanimu Yakubu, to appear before its committee on Tuesday over the ‘miserable’ budgetary allocation for the Ministry of Solid Minerals in the 2025 fiscal year.
The summon was issued by the National Assembly through its joint Committee on Solid Minerals after Bagudu failed to appear before the house as directed last Wednesday.
The joint committee chaired by Senator Sampson Ekong (PDP Akwa Ibom South) had last week frowned at N9bn proposed as a capital vote for the ministry when the Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, appeared for his 2025 budget defence.
Bagudu’s failure to appear before the committee following Alake’s appeal for an upward review of his allocation made the joint committee include the budget office DG in the summoning order.
The trio are expected to appear before the committee by 3 pm on Tuesday.
Ekong said, “Hon Minister, we are satisfied with your spirited efforts to get the N9bn budgetary proposal for your ministry in 2025 reviewed upward by the ministers in charge and the DG budget office. But we were disappointed that despite the efforts, nothing has been added to the proposed N9bn.
“Solid minerals is a very vital sector needed for diversification of the nation’s economy. We declared last week that the N9bn proposed for the ministry for the 2025 fiscal year was grossly inadequate and rejected the proposal but were surprised that it is the same proposal the minister came up with today.
“Therefore, in line with the resolution taken now, this joint committee still reject the N9bn proposal for the solid minerals ministry and summoned the ministers of finance, budgets and economic planning and the DG of budget office to appear before us tomorrow (Tuesday) by 3 pm prompt.”
Earlier, Alake chronicled the efforts he made before presenting his N49.7trn proposal in the 2025 budget before the joint session of the National Assembly on December 18, 2024, and his appeal for an upward review of the N9bn allocated to his ministry.
“I met the President on the need for upward review of the N9bn budgetary proposal for my ministry. I met the Minister of Finance, his counterpart in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning and also the Director-General of the Budget Office.
“They all gave assurances to get the N9bn proposal reviewed upward. But I am surprised that up to date, nothing of such has been done”, he lamented.
