Approach S/Court for interpretation - SANs
together in developing the budget such that there would have been understanding on the estimates before they are submitted to the National Assembly,” he said.
He urged the National Assembly to pass a budget law which will spell out the guidelines for making, processing and approving the budget, adding that the executive should play a role in the development of the Budget Act.
“The provisions of the constitution are too skeletal on the budget making and approving processes. Only a comprehensive budget law can help to address the perennial but needless controversy over whether the National Assembly can increase the budget estimates submitted by the president. Until then, the established practice since 1999 seems to be that the National Assembly has the power to vary the estimates submitted by the Executive,” Akinseye-George said.
Several other lawyers spoken to share the opinion of the law don with Abuja-based lawyer, Hameed Jimoh, explaining further that, “having considered the provisions of sections 80(2&3), 81(1,2&4), 82, 83 and 318(4) of Nigerian Constitution and Section 10(2) of the Interpretation Act, LFN, 2004, the National Assembly has the incidental powers to remove and or add in the appropriation bill or budget submitted to it by the executive.”
He said words like ‘authorise’ and ‘prescribe’ used in the above sections of the constitution as what the National Assembly has power to do on the appropriation bills presuppose that the National Assembly has the power to remove and or add to the executive’s appropriation bill submitted to it. He said the constitution never envisages a rubber stamp legislative body.
He said the membership in the National Assembly is such that gives the Nigerian people the opportunities of cross checking and making inputs into the country’s national budgets.
“So, it is a good idea if the Nigerian people have the ability of making inputs into the national treasury’s expenditures through its elected members in the National Assembly,” he said.
Jimoh said budget ‘padding’ or misuse of such incidental powers of the National Assembly are an internal issue and the people have the right to sue the National Assembly for enforcement of compliance with the provisions of the constitution and compel them to be transparent in their exercise of their legislative powers.
Meanwhile, several other senior lawyers including Femi Falana (SAN), Sebastine Hon (SAN) and Prof. Konyinsola Ajayi (SAN) have stressed the need to approach the Supreme Court to seek the true definition of “appropriation”.
Hon added that with the budget now signed, anybody can approach the Supreme Court to seek clarification since the move will have nothing to do with the signing of the budget but will put to rest the continued and yearly debate on what and what cannot be done to the budget by the NASS.