The Senate on Tuesday commenced debate on the general principles of the 2021 budget estimates.
The debate resulted in the division of the senators along party lines as senators elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress commended the President for the budget while those elected on the Peoples Democratic Party condemned the budget, describing it as unrealistic and unimplementable.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on October 8 presented a N13.08 trillion budget for 2021 to a joint sitting of the National Assembly.
The Senate Leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, who led the debate on the proposed budget, said the deficit of N5.19 trillion represents 3.64 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product which is above the threshold set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007.
Abdullahi said, “Even though the deficit is covered by N4.28 trillion of new borrowing and funds obtainable from privatisation proceeds and multilateral and bilateral sources, it is important for our committees on Finance to raise the matter for the National Assembly to permit this increase, as specified in the extant law, particularly given the special circumstances which made this necessary.
“It is important to point out that issues of revenue shortfall and meeting unexpected emergencies can only be tackled either by borrowing, cutting expenditure, shrinking the economy reducing government and social services, rationalisation, and job cut, among others.
“While the first option will pile up debts which must be paid in the future, it will allow us to survive the present and stabilise us to enable us to device the means of paying the debt.
“If invested properly debt could provide one with the platform and capacity to pay the debt itself and catapult one into a brighter future.
“The second option which is more dangerous is to shrink the economy and risk political suicide and economic turbulence by sacking workers, obliterating opportunities, cutting social service and starving our opportunities to death and oblivion.
While the first option requires management discipline, the second risks chaos, suffering and destitution. Of the two options, the first is better than the second.”
However, the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the budget does not reflect an understanding that the world has changed and that the nation’s problems have intensified.
Abaribe said, “The oil era is fading out, but the government retains an attitude of business-as-usual. This is not a time for tokenistic ideas. Nigeria needs big ideas. This 2021 budget proposal failed to deliver on that point.
“The 2021 budget presents no overarching economic philosophy. While Nigeria postures as a capitalistic economy, Buhari’s 2021 federal budget deemphasises the role of the markets in addressing the challenges in the economy, and seeks to expand the size of government.
“While socialism has its values, the arguments are in favour of capitalism. Governments should never do that which the markets are better able to accomplish. This position is even more compelling in a country like Nigeria.
“For instance, the 2021 budget proposes the building of new healthcare centres, procurement and equipping of numerous primary healthcare centres. While this makes for a good political headline, it is not different from what was done in the past that resulted in a substandard healthcare system.
“The 2021 budget does not reflect an understanding of the fundamental challenges with providing healthcare services in Nigeria. The budget does not reflect any actions to encourage private sector investments in the health sector.
“Most Nigerians acknowledge that the bureaucracy is too big and unwieldy; yet, the Buhari administration is focused on expanding the bureaucracy.
“The budget does not reflect an understanding of why the education system has failed or what needs to be done to fix it. Building new centres when the old centres are substandard does not address the rot in the system. Throwing good money after bad ideas is what got Nigeria in this rot in the first place.”
He also faulted Buhari’s plans to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in the next 10 years, stressing that there was no evidence that the government understands the root causes of escalating youth unemployment in Nigeria
He also Buhari’s intention to increase taxes and tariffs on the people without “any public commitments to cut back on its own fat.”
He said, “There are no big ideas in this budget. The budget reads like a template of old budgets but with different numbers. Nigeria needs big ideas now if it is to have any hope of turning its economy around and building a country that improves the quality of lives of its people.
“This budget is nothing but the same. We have a budget based on unrealistic expectations. We are not also so sure what the oil situation is going to be. This budget is nothing but old news. Every time the same old news, nothing new.”
Also speaking, the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan noted that the budget proposal was an estimate and assumption adding that it is what every Government has done since 1999 and will continue to do.
He advised Senator Abaribe to focus on those things that will make the budget perform optimally.
But Abaribe countered Lawan asking rhetorically that if the budget is based on assumption as he said, “why are you not assuming properly? We should not also be assuming the wrong things.”
“How would you budget 100 per cent when you know you are going to get 30 per cent? Every year we have a budget in which the capital budget and the debt are almost equal what does that tell us, how do we go forward from there?
“This budget is nothing but what Fela Anikulapo had said ‘Old news, every time the same old news, nothing new”
However, the Deputy Whip, Sabi Abdullahi, faulted Abaribe’s submissions accusing him of playing to the gallery of the opposition.
He said, “Senator Abaribe has made an hilarious presentation. Nigeria’s economy would have gone worse if it is not being managed by good managers of scarce resources.”
He listed the various interventions provided in the budget particularly in the health sector, social security and support for the small and medium scale industries as a genuine attempt to mitigate the impact of the current COVID – 19 pandemic on Nigerians.
But Senator Ike Ekweremadu said, “For the first time, our debt to GDP Ratio is over 3%. I want the committee on Finance and appropriation should find a solution to this.
“I have been very worried about the way we are going in terms of borrowing. I am concerned on the loan being given by China. They will not let you go off any of the debt because all the monies are for specific projects and if they are not done they take over.
“The other issue is the issue of social intervention. We have spent a lot of money on it but we still have young men who are looking for jobs.
“We need to deal with the real issues by investing in ICT, modern Agriculture. We must create life style centre around Agriculture and in modern farms. Until we do that, it will remain unattractive to our young people.”
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