Fuel Subsidy: Lawan Urges Buhari To Forward PIA Amendment Bill To N’ Assembly

The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, on Tuesday, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to transmit a bill to the National Assembly to amend the Petroleum Industry Act.

Lawan stated this before he referred the president’s request for the amendment of the 2022 Appropriation Act to the Committee on Appropriation after the bill scaled the second reading.

He said the request seeking an amendment to the PIA would enable the National Assembly to extend the subsidy regime in the Petroleum Industry Act to be in line with the president’s request for an additional N2.557 trillion to cover the fuel subsidy in the 2022 budget from July this year.

The present subsidy regime is expected to elapse in June 2022, in accordance with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act.

Buhari, in a letter to the National Assembly dated February 10, 2022, requested it to make an additional provision for N2.557 trillion to fund petrol subsidy in the 2022 Budget framework from July this year.

Lawan, therefore, mandated the relevant Oil and Gas Committees of the National Assembly to engage the Executive on a bill to amend the PIA to align with the president’s request.

He said: “This is an opportunity for me to speak to the issue of the Executive sending a request for the amendment of the Petroleum Industry Act to extend the provision of the fuel subsidy which is also requested in the amendment of the 2022 Appropriation Act.

“The Act itself says something else, that there will be no subsidy. If we approve for subsidy in the 2022 Appropriation Act Amendment Bill to us, then it means we have to extend the period in which government will provide subsidy up to the point this subsidy we approve (N2.557 trillion) would last.

“So, there is need to come up with the request for amendment.

“Our Gas and Oil related Committees should work with the Executive side of government to get that sorted as soon as possible, so that what we do is appropriate, and is lawful and legal.”

The bill seeking to amend the 2022 Appropriation Act scaled second reading in the Senate on Tuesday.

The bill, sponsored by the Senate Leader, Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North), requested Senate approval for N106,161,499,052 for capital expenditures and N43,870,592,044 for recurrent without increasing budget deficit.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday accused members of the National Assembly of allegedly inserting their projects in the 2022 budget at the detriment of those initiated by the Executive arm of government.

He therefore asked the federal lawmakers to amend the 2022 Appropriation Act passed by the National Assembly in December 2021.

The request was contained in a letter dated February 10, 2022, and read during plenary by the Senate President Lawan.

Buhari, in the letter, also said it was imperative to remove all capital projects that were replicated in the 2022 Appropriation Act.

He lamented that 139 out of the 254 projects in the budget totalling N13.24 billion had been identified for deletion.

The president, therefore, requested the National Assembly to amend the Appropriation Act to provide for Capital Expenditures in the sum of N106,161,499,052 billion, and N43,870,592,044 billion for Recurrent Expenditures.

He also requested that an additional provision for N2.557 trillion be appropriated by the National Assembly to fund the petrol subsidy in the 2022 Budget framework which was revised to provide fully for PMS subsidy.

Buhari stressed the need to reinstate four capital projects totalling N1.4 billion in the Executive proposal for the Federal Ministry of Water Resources.

He said N22 billion should be cut from the provision for the Sinking Fund to retire mature loans needed to meet government’s obligations under already Issued Bonds.

The president, in his letter, condemned the National Assembly for removing crucial projects from the 2022 budget estimates sent to it by the Executive and inserting individual lawmakers’ ones in the fiscal document.

He also accused the federal lawmakers of making unnecessary incursion into the operational areas of the executive.

Buhari said: “You will agree with me that the inclusion of National Assembly’s expenditures in the Executive Budget negates the principles of separation of powers and financial autonomy of the Legislature.

“It is therefore necessary to transfer the National Assembly’s expenditures totalling N16.59 billion in the Service Wide Vote to National Assembly Statutory Transfer provision (see Schedule l).

“It is also imperative to reinstate the N22.0 billion cut from the provision for Sinking Fund to Retire Mature Loans to ensure that government can meet its obligations under already issued bonds as and when they mature.

“The cuts made from provisions for the recurrent spending of Nigeria’s Foreign Missions, which are already constrained, are capable of causing serious embarrassment to the country as they mostly relate to office and residential rentals.

“Similarly, the reductions in provisions for allowances payable to personnel of the Nigerian Navy and Police Formations and Commands could create serious issues for government. It is therefore imperative that these provisions be restored as proposed.

“It is also absolutely necessary to remove all capital projects that are replicated in the 2022 Appropriation Act.

“139 out of the 254 such projects totalling N13.24 billion have been identified to be deleted from the budget.

“Some significant and non-mandate projects were introduced in the budgets of the Ministry of Transportation, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation

“There are several other projects that have been included by the National Assembly in the budgets of agencies that are outside their mandate areas.

“The Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning has been directed to work with your relevant Committees to comprehensively identify and realign all such misplaced projects.”