15th November, 2015
The President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, on Sunday said the National Assembly would make public the details of the 2016 budget breakdown.
This was contained in a statement signed by the Special Assistant to the President of the Senate on Social Media, Mr Bamikole Omishore, and made available to newsmen in Abuja.
Saraki said that from 2016, Nigerians would not have to rely on the ‘’falsehood’’ they received from some online media.
He said that the development was in fulfilment of his inaugural promise and part of efforts to satisfy the curiosity of some Nigerians who had been clamouring that the budget should be made public.
“By the time we come into the 2016 budget, at the end of the year, it will be clearer because people just see one item line.
“But that is not going to happen now; you will see what goes to the Senate and what goes to the House of Representatives.
“You are going to see what goes to the management, what goes to the Legislative Institute and we are going to make all these open and clear.
“That is part of the openness we promised,” Saraki said in the statement.
He recalled that at his inauguration on June 9, he promised that there would be change from impunity and elite arrogance to a life of accountability and respect for every citizen.
He said that the National Assembly must, therefore, justify the privilege of representation conferred on it by the people.
“As the President of the 8th Senate and Chairman of the National Assembly, I shall be guided by the enormity of the responsibilities that this moment imposes on all of us,” he said.
Saraki restated his commitment to being accessible to the citizens on the dealings of the senate, saying that he understood the expectations of Nigerians from him as president of the senate.