The suspension without investigation of Senator Abdul Ningi over his budget padding claim leaves much to be desired, especially with respect to transparency and accountability.
Development Diaries reports that Senator Ningi was suspended by the Senate for three months for alleging that the 2024 budget was padded by three trillion naira.
While it is not a new occurrence for the red chamber to suspend senators, we believe that suspending a lawmaker for whistleblowing on budget padding raises serious ethical questions.
It can be interpreted as a warning to other legislators not to expose corruption or irregularities, thus perpetuating a culture of silence and complicity in financial mismanagement.
The Senate could have instead called for an independent investigation of the Bauchi senator’s claim.
And as observed by Cofounder of Budgit, Seun Onigbinde, the N28.78 trillion 2024 Appropriations Act lacked specific project allocations totaling around N3.7 trillion. This observation indicates that there are transparency issues in the budgetary allocations to government ministries and agencies.
Also, the Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) raised concerns over how the Senate and the House of Representatives have developed new methods to sneak fake projects into the budget, making it impossible to monitor.
The National Assembly must be reminded of the importance of accountability and transparency in governance, especially to earn public trust.
There is, therefore, a need for a thorough investigation into the allegations as well as corrective measures taken to ensure public funds are used judiciously for the benefit of all Nigerians.
As called by CHRICED, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) must begin a special investigation into Senator Ningi’s charges and make their findings public.
We also call on citizens to monitor and question their representatives at the National Assembly on how funds allocated for constituency projects are utilised throughout the year.
Source: Senate