Honourable Philip Agbese, Member of the Federal House of Representative representing the Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency of Benue State has reacted to the ongoing wide castigation of the 10th National Assembly on the N70B allocated to the legislature.
Both the House of Senate and House of Representatives had on President Tinubu's request made amendments to the 2022 supplementary budget for the total of N819.B out of which a provision of N500B is made for palliative measures against the negative economic effects that subsidy removal may bring to Nigerians. In the amendment also, both houses made a provision for the sum of N70B “to support the working conditions” of the legislature.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
The implication of this is that while Federal government targets 12 million households with the meager amount of N8,000 for the period of six month translating to just N48,000 for the whole period, the amount that will go to each legislature will be N149M. This unjustifiable divide between the governed and the government as proposed by the 10th National Assembly under a government that has promised a renewed hope is what has brought the wide condemnation from Nigerians, especially, from civil society organizations who consider the provision as outrageous.
Meanwhile, defending this position on Wednesday 19th 2023 on a political TV magazine program, Honourable Philip Agbese explained that the N70B is not to be shared to the legislatures, but it is rather meant to “support the working conditions” of the Legislature. “The N70B is not for the National Assembly, but for running cost in the provision of accommodation and vehicles etc which are very important” he said. He thereafter said that if Nigerians want them to jettison this, the legislatures will not mind. “At any time that Nigerians feel these are not important, we don’t mind. Senators are to go to the way of camels, horses and bicycles”, he retorted.
