25 March 2015, Sweetcrude, Lagos – The House of Representatives has described as insufficient the N4 million projected by the National Oil Spill and Detection Agency, NOSDRA, as internally generated revenue for the year.
Questioning the rationale behind the projection, Chairman of the House Committee on Environment, Hon. Uche Ekwunife, said the amount was insufficient for a serious-minded government agency like NOSDRA that is implementing government’s policy in the oil sector.
Ekwunife was reacting to the presentation by NOSDRA at the 2015 budget defence.
The committee also queried the Director-General of the agency over misappropriation of the 2014 budget, describing spendings in the budget as gross violation of the budgetary provisions. It ordered the director general to have a fresh budget defence.
Ekwunife described the agency’s budget as a prototype budget, lambasting the agency for presenting a document that has the same item and amount as sub-heads in a three-year budget cycle.
The lawmaker further stated that what was presented in the budget document clearly showed that the 2014 budget was not implemented by the agency.
A member of the committee, Sekonte Davies (APC Rivers) said he found it difficult to understand why “releases were made quarterly, but you distribute your expenditure sub-heads evenly.”
Members argued that all the figures were the same everywhere. “I want to align myself with the previous speakers that the agency go and re-work the budget,” he stated.
Ekwunife was reacting to the presentation by NOSDRA at the 2015 budget defence.
The committee also queried the Director-General of the agency over misappropriation of the 2014 budget, describing spendings in the budget as gross violation of the budgetary provisions. It ordered the director general to have a fresh budget defence.
Ekwunife described the agency’s budget as a prototype budget, lambasting the agency for presenting a document that has the same item and amount as sub-heads in a three-year budget cycle.
The lawmaker further stated that what was presented in the budget document clearly showed that the 2014 budget was not implemented by the agency.
A member of the committee, Sekonte Davies (APC Rivers) said he found it difficult to understand why “releases were made quarterly, but you distribute your expenditure sub-heads evenly.”
Members argued that all the figures were the same everywhere. “I want to align myself with the previous speakers that the agency go and re-work the budget,” he stated.