It was yet another dramatic moment as the Senate
uncovered N2 billion padded into the budget of the
Ministry of Power, Works and Housing under Babatunde
Fashola.
The Minister was left dumbfounded as he couldn't
explain how the N2 billion got into his ministry's 2017
budget proposal.
According to DailyPost, Fashola denied knowledge of
the N2bn allocated to Regional Housing Scheme in the
2017 budget proposal of the ministry.
Fashola said he
has nothing to do with the controversial item labeled
FMOW99934089 and referred the committee to the
Ministry of Finance for information on the controversial
item.
Explaining further, he told the committee members that
he had no knowledge of the N2bn allocation as it was
discovered in the proposal after it was worked upon by
the Ministry of Finance.
The Chairman of the committee, Senator Barnabas
Gemade, requested that the Minister of Finance, Kemi
Adeosun, be invited to explain the insertion of the
allocation.
This is how the conversation went down between
Fashola and Gemade during the budget defence:
Gemade: Finally, what is this provision of N2bn for
regional housing scheme? What is regional housing
scheme? Where is it taking place? What is happening?
Have you seen it on Page 18?
Fashola: It is not our project. It came in from, I think,
the Budget (Office). It is a Ministry of Finance initiative;
saying that they want to do what they called ‘family
homes’. It is not from us.
Gemade: Yes, but they have put it here; otherwise, we
will not be in the position to accept it.
Fashola: I know as much of it as you do sir.
Gemade: But you are here to defend this budget in
totality.
Fashola: That is why I have come. I am explaining to
you now, sir, on how it came into our budget. That is
not what we submitted. We didn’t submit that proposal.
Gemade: So, will the ministry be kind enough to tell the
people who put this in this budget to come forward and
let us know?
Fashola: Please.
Gemade: Let us know what is regional housing
programme because government cannot be operated in
secrecy.
Fashola: I think the committee, if you permit me to bring
this suggestion…
Gemade: …should invite them?
Fashola: Yes, sir.
Gemade: But you know the people; we don’t know
them.
Fashola: No, sir. We just said finance sir.
Gemade: Finance ministry?
Fashola: Yes sir.
Gemade: We will write to the minister.
Fashola: Please do sir.
Gemade: (Pointing to the committee’s secretariat) Write
to the minister: We have seen this line, which costs
N2bn. Let them send information here for us to know
what it is all about.
