Daud Olatunji
In a glaring example of budget padding, the National Assembly inflated the budgets of three federal institutions by a staggering N105.8 billion for the 2024 fiscal year, PLATFORM TIMES can report .
According to BudgIT, a leading Nigerian civic organization dedicated to promoting financial transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement in governance, the National Assembly inflated the budget proposals of three federal government institutions ; the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, Federal College of Horticulture, Gombe and Federal Co-operative College, Ibadan.
PLATFORM TIMES reports that SMEDAN had a proposed budget of N18 billion to fulfill its mandate of promoting and developing SMEs.
However, the National Assembly approved N75 billion, an increase of N57 billion.
Inserted into the budget were projects unrelated to SMEDAN’s core mission, including:N5 billion for vehicles for traditional rulers, N3 billion for motorcycles and tricycles and N2 billion for boreholes.
Another shocking revelation involves the Federal College of Horticulture, Dadin-Kowa, Gombe.
PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the institution initially proposed N368 million for its 2024 budget, but, the National Assembly approved N42.7 billion, padding it with an additional N42 billion.
Similarly, the Federal Co-operative College, Ibadan, submitted a modest budget proposal of N1.5 billion, but this was inflated to N46.9 billion by lawmakers.
This included 182 inserted projects valued at N45.36 billion.
Critics have questioned how these insertions align with SMEDAN’s mandate, urging lawmakers to ensure the agency’s resources are focused on supporting small businesses.
Analysts have described this as a gross abuse of the budgeting process, noting that many of these projects do not align with the institution’s mandate.
The budget padding scandal has sparked widespread criticism of the National Assembly’s handling of the 2024 fiscal budget.
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