The Presidency has given firm assurances that the Buhari administration which came to power on the back of anti-corruption and good governance would live up to its promises and commitments regarding those commitments.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu told State House Correspondents yesterday that this was in line with the President’s wish to offer a more accountable and transparent administration.
Speaking against the backdrop of the decision of the administration to submit the budget proposals of ministries, departments, and agencies, (MDAs) to the National Assembly for their scrutiny, which is the first under this democracy, Shehu said, the remarkable development was worth celebrating.
According to him, “the laying of budgets for the MDAs, particularly those regarding the Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN) and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation) NNPC) behemoth is clearly unprecedented.
“The President is determined to make the budgeting more transparent and more participative. It is all part of the re-engineering of the entire processes of government for the benefit of the welfare of ordinary citizens,” the presidential spokesman explained.
Shehu quoted the President as saying that good governance is key to the nation’s progress and that transparency is the cornerstone of any government that has the welfare of ordinary citizens as its mantra, adding,
“By responding positively to the demand of the National Assembly that MDA budgets be laid before it for scrutiny, a demand mostly ignored by past administrations, President Buhari has given a clear indication of his commitment to an open, transparent and people-oriented government for Nigerians.
“He has shown that he is not hiding any secrets. It is equally a mark of respect for the institution of parliament. Our hope and expectation are that the National Assembly, acting in the best interest of the nation will allow the immediate operationalization of the budgets, so that the momentum of growth of the economy which has begun to build up will be sustained.”
He further assured that Buhari would not let Nigerians down on key promises made by the government. – Guardian.
