President Bola Tinubu Wednesday informed the National Assembly via a letter that he is jacking up the 2025 budget based on increased revenue from the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, the Nigeria Customs and other Federal government agencies.
In his budget presentation December 18, 2024, to the National Assembly, Tinubu tabled a proposal of N49.7 trillion, but in his letter, he is proposing N54.2 trillion. Senate president Godswill Akpabio who read the letter during Wednesday’s plenary told lawmakers that Tinubu based his calculations on the N1.4 trillion generated by the FIRS and the N1.2 trillion by the Nigeria Customs and N1.8 trillion generated by some other Government Owned Agencies.
Without much ado Akpabio directed the request to the Senate Committee on Appropriation for expeditious consideration and declared that the 2025 budget would be passed before the end of February.
Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu stated that the budget was always going to be reviewed as Federal agencies generate more revenue.
“While the process was still going on, the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senate Committee on National Planning and Senate Committee on Finance established that we can generate more revenue by tasking all the institutions to do more and the Federal Inland Revenue Service confirmed the ability to do more than was submitted.
“It was established that the government-owned enterprises can contribute more revenue, as well as the Customs Service.
“So additional revenue amounting to over N4.5 trillion naira was established, and this was taken to the President and he guided that this additional revenue should be used to further strengthen the Bank of Agriculture, Bank of Industry, support the diversification program by putting more money in the solid minerals sector, as well as infrastructure projects.”
