Lawan made this known in an address delivered to declare open an interactive session “on the need to improve internally generated revenue of the Federal Government of Nigeria and Revenue Projections of the Agencies as Contained In the Appropriation Act 2022.”

The meeting was between the Senate leadership and members of the Committee on Finance and Revenue Generating Agencies of Government.

The Senate President, in his speech, said the purpose of the meeting was to explore means of increasing government revenues.

According to him, one of such ways was for the National Assembly to be rigid on increased revenue to cut down on the country’s budget deficit and borrowings, as well as prevent wasteful expenditures by agencies of government.

He assured that the upper chamber would provide the needed support through legislation to ensure that revenue agencies performed to meet and surpassed their targets.

He said: “In 2022, the National Assembly assumed and rightly so, that our government owned enterprises can generate up to N3 trillion if we are of the mindset that we can achieve that and, of course, ensure that we oversight to stall any possibility of unwarranted expenditures by agencies of government.

“But that does not mean in any way that it is going to be some kind of investigation on what you do, but an encouragement of what you need to do.

“In this meeting and subsequent ones, there should be no holds barred on discussions.

“Where an agency feels it is encumbered in any way from achieving its target, it should say so, so that we are able to prescribe the right solutions for it to perform.

“As a National Assembly, let me say that the Senate particularly will be stiff on generating more and more revenue.

“We will be rigid, we will continue to insist, because we believe that this is one sure and guaranteed way of reducing our deficit and borrowing.”

Lawan explained that the drive by the upper chamber for more revenues to the coffers of government, would enhance the economy and facilitate infrastructural development.

“This Committee is modified, because the leaders of the Senate believe that we can do far better and we have seen signs when last year some of the agencies performed beyond expectation.

“So, it is an opportunity for us to save and enhance our economy and, of course, make Nigeria achieve more infrastructural development which is the goal of this administration and every Nigerian.

“We believe that when you (revenue agencies) generate the money, we (National Assembly) appropriate it.

“Prudence is of essence here, when we spend our money. And when we borrow, like the National Assembly has always tried to do, we borrow to treat specific projects and programmes of government,” the Senate President said.

Chairman of the Committee on Finance, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, in his welcome address, lamented that there was insufficient funds for the implementation of policies and projects captured in the 2022 budget of the federal government.

He explained that the funds were derived partly from the revenue generated by the government owned enterprises and other independent revenues sources of the federal government.

According to the lawmaker, “there is an urgent need for all hands to be on deck on revenue generation for government, as well as prevent misuse and leakages of such revenue for frivolous purposes not sanctioned by the laws of the National Assembly.”

He advised that for government to reduce and eliminate deficit budgeting associated with the nation’s budget over the years, effort must be made to minimise borrowing to fund projects.

Revenue agencies present at the interactive session include: National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, National Steel Raw Materials Exploration Agency, Nigerian Postal Service, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, and Nigeria Customs Service.

Others were the Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigeria Prisons Service, Maritime Academy of Nigeria, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, and Abuja Geographic Information Systems, AGIS.

Also present were the Federal Capital Territory Administration,  Energy Commission of Nigerians, Administrative Staff College of Nigeria, Nigerian Export Import Bank, NEXIM, Nigerian Ports Authority and the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria.

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Lawan gave the charge on Thursday in a welcome address delivered during the presentation of the 2021 budget estimates by President Muhammadu Buhari at a joint session of the National Assembly.

According to the Senate President, there is the urgent need by government to sustain programmes aimed at economic diversification, not only because of the unpredictable nature of oil revenue, but due to recent uncertainties arising from the coronavirus.

He added that sufficient injection of funds into such programmes would give a boost to the nation’s economy.

“Mr. President, the implementation of the 2020 Budget has shown a remarkable improvement over the previous years.

“Certainly, the injection of funds for the various programmes and projects had helped our economy. We expect that before the end of this fiscal year, the 2020 Budget would have been implemented 100 percent. This will be a historic feat.

“The impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic is a global affliction that every country needs to address through various measures.

“The National Assembly approved the Nigerian Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP), a Plan of the Federal Government, to address the economic challenges of today.

“All efforts should be made to implement the plan, as a number of schemes are designed to keep our Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) afloat.

“Mr. President, it is our hope that the 2021 Budget will be targeted at consolidation of gains made by the 2020 Budget. The 2020 Budget was targeted at sustaining growth and jobs. We need to not only protect jobs but create more.

“The COVID-19 Pandemic has revealed the ultimate vulnerability of our economy, as a monolithic, oil dependent economy.

“The sudden crash in the price of crude in the world market, and the consequent impact on our economy, should spur us into genuine search for the diversification of our economy, for other revenue sources.”

The Senate President while pledging the National Assembly’s readiness to pass the 2021 budget before the end of the year, said doing so “will continue to enable planning and enhance productivity and efficiency in the management and application of our resources.”

He however lamented that the Federal Government had resorted to borrowing to fund critical projects in the budget due to inadequate revenue at its disposal.

Lawan blamed government’s low revenue profile owing to leakages on the inefficiency of revenue generating agencies.

“Mr. President, as our revenues plummeted, we have resorted to borrowing to fund the development of some critical infrastructure.

“Our revenue generation, collection and remittances need to be critically examined. Recent interactions between our Committees on Finance and National Planning and Economic Matters, with over 200 revenue generating and collection agencies have revealed so much inefficiencies in their systems.

“It was revealed that government loses so much money as a result. Similarly, there are so much leakages of moneys that could have easily been available for national development.”

“Due to inadequate revenue, government has to borrow in order to finance its projects. It is equally important that we should diversify our sources of funding of our programmes and projects.

“We need to encourage and promote more private sector participation in developing some of our physical infrastructure.

“We could explore the Public Private Partnership (PPP), Build Operate Transfer (BOT), and many other funding options. This is with a view to reducing our level of borrowing,” the Senate President advised.

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My brother, Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, once observed that those who believe do not need further explanation, and neither do those who have made up their minds not to believe. I cannot agree more with Femi. Yet, to carry the people along on policymaking and implementation, government has to speak with them, whether the minds are open, hold strong views or are even prejudiced. That is the reason why communication is a key element in the governance process, more so in a democracy. Understanding the makeup of the polity is important in developing a communication strategy that effectively and regularly delivers the messages to all strata of the polity and minimizes the impact of mischievous cynics.

In line with Femi’s observation, getting some people to share a viewpoint with government is like forcing a horse to the river for a drink. Those may even take a further step away by misinforming others, oftentimes deliberately. This is a familiar scenario in our polity of late. It is scary, but one has to expect it from our adversarial politics.

The Senate at a special plenary on Tuesday, 28th April, 2020 gave its approval to a request by the executive to borrow N850 billion from the domestic capital market. The request as well as the legislative approval have since unsurprisingly drawn varied commentaries in the media.

The Senate had to break its suspension of plenary over the COVID-19 pandemic for the special session. This was because of the urgent need to provide legislative support to the Federal Government in tackling the pandemic and its socio-economic fallouts in Nigeria. Since its surreptitious arrival late last year in a corner of the globe, the ruthless virus has indiscriminately spread death and misery across the world, making nonsense of every plan of government and society in general for 2020 and the immediate future.  One of the most affected plans here is the 2020 Budget. Ironically, that budget was passed in earnest and with great enthusiasm last year by a National Assembly determined to institutionalize a new January-December fiscal cycle to improve the performance of our annual budgets.

There is no basis for any dispute at all on this presidential request, unless we are to glamourise undue rascality. It is no secret that some people are actually waiting for such. In vain they will wait.

At that special session of the Upper House on Tuesday, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, acknowledged four communications from the Executive. But the one that has quite understandably been of most public interest is the request for approval for the N850 billion borrowing plan from the domestic Capital Market.

The focus of this piece is not to debate the desirability or otherwise of the borrowing plan. Instead, it is to put the record straight and correct the misconception or distortion in the communication that the Senate approved a fresh loan request by the Executive. No, the Senate did no such thing!

The obvious intention of the purveyors of this misinformation is to solidify their mischievous caricature of the ninth Senate as a rubber stamp legislative chamber. Whatever is stated here will not dissuade such people but will at least set the record straight and alert the unwary to their recurrent mischief.

Of course, the ninth National Assembly is unapologetic about its commitment to working in harmony with the other arms of government in the overall best interest of the people they represent. Yes, this is a guiding philosophy of the Federal lawmakers. It is evident that there are people who are not comfortable with cooperation among arms of government, perhaps because of their understanding of the concepts of independence of the institutions and separation of powers. Some see democracy in action only when the arms and officials are fussing and fighting over every issue. They are wrong.

This segment of people has since seized the social and traditional media to portray the Senate as calling the Tuesday’s special session to “rubber stamp” a fresh loan request by the Executive. That portrayal takes the executive communication to the Senate and the subsequent approval completely out of context.

The N850 billion loan request was, in fact, approved by the National Assembly long ago as part of the 2020 budget. President Muhammadu Buhari’s letter to the Senate President, dated 24th March, 2020, clearly referenced this fact. The president, in his letter, reminded the Upper Chamber that the 2020 Appropriation Act provided for N1.594,986,007,544.00 of New Borrowing, comprising N744,986,007,544.00 New Domestic Borrowing and N850 billion of New External Borrowing. The letter explained that these borrowings were to part-finance the 2020 Budget deficit of N2,175,197,885,232.00.

The letter reads in part: “The Senate may wish to note that External Borrowing from the International Capital Markets increases Nigeria’s External Reserves, provides access to lower cost and longer tenured funds, as well as avoids crowding out private sector borrowers who also wish to access the Domestic Capital Market. However, recent developments in the global economic environment, as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic and decline in international oil prices, have made it less attractive to borrow from the International Capital Markets at this time.

“To ensure that there are adequate funds to finance critical projects and programmes in the 2020 Budget, I hereby seek the Senate’s approval, by resolution, to raise the N850 billion of New External Borrowing, in Naira, from the Domestic Capital Market, instead of from the International Capital Markets. However, it remains our intention to access the International Capital Markets when global conditions improve, to refinance the N850 billion of New Borrowing and optimise the benefits inherent in External Borrowing.”

The lawmakers across the aisles realise that the Executive needs the necessary legislative support for Nigeria to weather the storms buffeting us and the rest of the world and they will continue to give it without compromising the independence of their institution and oversight role.

The summary, therefore, is that the President only requested the approval of the Senate to vary the source of a loan which the Legislature had previously given him approval to obtain.

From this simple explanation, it becomes difficult to see how the Senate would have voted against a loan already contained in the 2020 Appropriation Act. How could Buhari have made a fresh request for a loan that is already in the 2020 Budget?

Buhari merely asked the lawmakers to allow him source the loan from the Domestic Capital Market, instead of from the International Capital Markets for which he had earlier secured their approval. Nothing more. Nothing less. So why are the critics faulting the wisdom of the Senate and its leadership in approving Buhari’s request in this critical period of battling the Coronavirus pandemic? This is certainly not the time or issue for the Legislature to pick a fight with the Executive. There is no basis for any dispute at all on this presidential request, unless we are to glamourise undue rascality. It is no secret that some people are actually waiting for such. In vain they will wait.

The Executive side has explained times without number why they are resorting to borrowing in this period. Revenue is dwindling, yet the infrastructure and other development deficits are widening. The population is expanding, increasing the demand for jobs and social services. These needs would not wait until government can generate the revenue by itself.

The coronavirus pandemic has only complicated the fiscal challenges for us here as for other countries across the world. Which is one of the reasons it made no sense to proceed with the initial plan to borrow offshore. The prediction has been strident that the world, including Nigeria, is yet again on the march to another recession.

Speaking for the Legislature, the Senate President has pledged thorough legislative oversight of the disbursement of all monies borrowed. Following every legislative approval for any borrowing plan, Lawan unfailingly reiterated the Legislature’s demand for accountability in spending. If such a pledge failed in the past, it will not in this dispensation. The lawmakers across the aisles realise that the Executive needs the necessary legislative support for Nigeria to weather the storms buffeting us and the rest of the world and they will continue to give it without compromising the independence of their institution and oversight role.

*Mr Awoniyi is the Special Adviser on Media to President of the Senate

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This is as he dismissed the insinuation that the ninth National Assembly was a rubber stamp Legislature.

Lawan returned to Nigeria Thursday morning after about three weeks private visit abroad.

The Senate President who spoke on Friday was responding to a surprise belated birthday presentation by his North East Support Group at the Dutse Airport in Jigawa State on his way to his Yobe North Senatorial District in Yobe State.

Lawan said: “The ninth National Assembly is a National Assembly that is focused, that is united, that is determined to make a positive difference in the lives of Nigerians.

“We are so terribly misunderstood that when we say that we are going to work with the Executive arm of government in a very harmonious and productive manner, some people, some out of misunderstanding, some out of mischief, say it’s a rubber stamp National Assembly.

“But let me say this: no amount of distractions or blackmail will stop us from being united in the National Assembly for the benefit of Nigerians who elected us and nothing will discourage us from working with the executive arm of government for the betterment of our country.

“As a legislature we know where our limits lie in terms of cooperation and in working with the executive arm of government. But we are going to give the President and his team every possible legislative support that they require to make this country better and greater.

“Where we feel that there is a breach of procedures and processes by the executive arm of government, we will insist that the right things are done.

“So it doesn’t mean that because we are peaceful and that we are cordial with the executive arm of government that we are rubber stamp but that is something that will not distract us.

“We have seen what a “rubber stamp” National Assembly could do. We have already passed so many important and critical legislations within the last six months and if that is what we can be achieving with that kind of understanding, so be it.”

The Senate President also expressed satisfaction about the prevailing cordiality among members of the National Assembly and sought the support and understanding of the people.

“Our colleagues in the Senate particularly and generally in the National Assembly have given us every support that we need to perform our functions as a legislature.

“We are going to continue to seek your support and understanding and the support of all Nigerians in this enterprise.

“We believe governance is not only for those who are elected or appointed. Governance is for everybody. Those who are elected and appointed and those who we hold the offices in trust for.

“So you should continue to pray for us. You should continue to advise us. You should continue to ensure that we don’t derail,” Lawan said.

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An Islamic human rights group, Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC, made this remark on Monday.

The group expressed the remark in support of the position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, that the current legislative house was not a rubber stamp to the Executive arm of government.

MURIC, in a statement by its director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, said describing the legislature as a rubber stamp amounted to blackmail, a situation which he said was wrong.

The statement reads:  “We fully endorse Speaker Gbajabiamila’s comment. We commend him for coming out with such a bold declaration. Harmony between the legislature and the executive can only translate to progress for the nation. We prefer cooperation between the legislature and the executive to hostility and incoherence. What did the Nigerian citizens gain from the endless confrontation which characterized the 8th Senate? It was fully sarakitised to the detriment of tax-payers.

“Senators in the 8th NASS abandoned their primary assignments and spent the greater part of the time following the Senate president to court sessions. Lawmakers became unrepentant law breakers, established comedians and professional tree-climbers. Opportunist inheritors among them manifested a shameless capacity to out-do Michael Jackson and to jump out of windows at the approach of examination supervisors.

“Fortunately Nigerians were not deceived. The group of deceitful lawmakers were sent packing by the electorate. It is not surprising, therefore, that some miscreants, unpatriotic and unscrupulous Nigerians now make it their daily pastime to accuse the current distinguished senators of being rubber stamps of the executive. Talk of pot calling kettle black. It is cheap blackmail. We know those behind this dirty game. We also know their objective. They confronted the executive in their own time because they knew that the war against corruption would catch up with them since they had skeletons in their cupboards. Their intention was to bring down the government but they failed.

“MURIC urges the 9th Senate to ignore critics and wailers. We appeal to the current senators to continue in the same path of full cooperation with the executive. They should not allow anyone to goad them into any confrontation. We voted them into the NASS to facilitate the law making process and to promote good governance, not to constitute clogs in the wheel of progress for the executive or harbingers of pain and distress for the citizenry.”

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This was even as the President of the Senate, Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan, announced that the 2020 Appropriation bill before the National Assembly will be passed on Thursday, December 5, 2019.

The passage of the Public Procurement bills by the upper chamber was sequel to presentation and consideration of the report of the Senate Committee on Public Procurement.

The three amendment bills are sponsored by Senators Shuaibu Isah (PDP, Taraba North); Uche Ekwunife (PDP, Anambra Central); Danladi Sankara (APC, Jigawa North West).

Chairman of the Committee, Senator Shuaibu Isah Lau (PDP, Taraba North), in his presentation, said “certain amendments were made on the bills to encapsulate the ingredients of the varied views collated from experts and professionals, aimed at adding value to the Procurement Act.”

The Senate, in a clause-by-clause consideration of the bill, adopted the recommendations of the committee with slight amendments made to Section 1 under the Establishment of National Council on Public Procurement.

The amendment to clause 1 of the bill provides that the council shall consist of a chairman who shall be appointed by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as against the previous provision of the 2007 Act which specifically names the Minister of Finance as chairman.

The Senate also adopted the committee’s recommendation on the issuance of Certificate of No Objection which shall be issued by a Committee of Directors of the Bureau to the chaired by the Director-General of the Public Procurement Bureau.

Similarly, the upper chamber considered the recommendation of the committee to review upwards the mobilisation fee from 15 per cent to 20 per cent for local contractors as insufficient.

Accordingly, Section 35 of the Act was amended to provide for not more than thirty per cent mobilisation for local contractors.

The amendment for an upward review of thirty-five per cent mobilisation for local contractors was initially proposed by Senator Jibrin Barau (APC, Kano North) and seconded by Ibikunle Amosun (APC, Ogun Central).

The Senate, however, settled for a thirty-per cent review moved by Senator Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South) and seconded by Senator Rose Oko (PDP, Cross River North).

In his remarks, the Senate President said that the passage of the Public Procurement Bill would complement the 2020 budget set to be passed tomorrow by the Senate.

The report of the Senate Committee on Appropriations was laid before the upper chamber on Wednesday by its Chairman, Senator Jibrin Barau.

According to Lawan, the Public Procurement bill passed by the upper chamber would be forwarded to the House of Representatives for concurrence.

“What we have done today is really to put the icing on the cake on what we are about to do tomorrow by the grace of God when we pass the 2020 budget.

“We have already passed the Finance bills that will ensure that we get the required revenue to implement the budget.

“The public procurement process in Nigeria has been a big bottleneck for sometime, probably since it was passed.

“I believe that with this amendment, the procurement process will be faster and better, as will be the budget implementation process.

“Surely, this bill will have to go to the House of Representatives for them to concur.

“I had a discussion with the Honourable Speaker that they will concur with us before we go on the Christmas break so that we will give the executive all they would require for them to implement the 2020 budget successfully,” Lawan said.

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This was even as the upper chamber appealed to Nigerians not to stigmatise and discriminate against persons living with the virus, as well as advised all adults to know their HIV status by subjecting themselves to screening.

Accordingly, the Senate also called on the private sector in the country to embrace the fight against HIV/AIDS by partnering with government to fund the exercise.

These were resolutions reached by the Senate after consideration of a motion on “World Aids Day” sponsored by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (PDP, Enugu North).

Utazi, who brought forward his motion through orders 42 and 52 of the Senate Standing Rules, said there were fears in the HIV community that intervention funders might leave Nigeria soon for places where the deadly virus was yet to be kept at bay.

The lawmaker stated that such fears were as a result of the outcome of the report of the National HIV/AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey, NAIIS, unveiled by President Muhammadu Buhari in March, this year, which showed that prevalence of the virus in Nigeria dropped from 2.8 percent to 1.4 per cent among adults aged 15-49 years.

According to Utazi, out of the 1.9 million people living with HIV in Nigeria, over a million of them were currently accessing treatment to achieve viral suppression.

He added, “With the appreciable control of this epidemic and the increasing expectation of further shrinking, the usual funding from foreign donors will equally shrink leaving Nigeria to battle in funding the management and care of people with HIV.”

Worried about the sustainability of the fight against HIV infection and control in Nigeria, the lawmaker posited that in a situation where funding partners pulled out of the country, it would become imperative for private sector involvement in raising the needed fund to support government at the Federal and State levels.

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Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, Senator Rafiu Ibrahim, made this known on Friday.

In a statement he issued, Ibrahim said on Tuesday, the Senate had already passed the N242, 245, 050,100 virement request with the stipulation that it should be funded from the Service Wide Vote, but had to rescind, reconsider and revise its position following pressure on members of the Appropriations Committee by the Executive.

His words:  “The insinuations being peddled that the Senate single-handedly and unilaterally cut the budgets of critical MDAs is false. Such actions are uncharacteristic of this 8th Senate.

“The facts remain that on Tuesday, October 16th, the Senate approved a Report that stipulated that the supplementary funding for INEC and security agencies to conduct the 2019 election should be sourced from the Service Wide Vote of the Executive through virement. This information is out everywhere.

“However, the Executive came up with a counter-proposal that asked that the election be funded through both the Service Wide Vote and the budgets of 30 MDAs —on a pro rata basis. This is why, the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Danjuma Goje, had to come up with a Motion to rescind, reconsider and revise the source of funding contained in the original approval granted by the Senate.

“So, if you take a close look at the Senate’s Order paper of Wednesday, November 7, 2018, you will see that N121,122,525,050, which represents half of the entire supplementary budget, was sourced from 30 MDAs chosen by the Executive, while the other N121,122,525,050 was taken from the Service Wide Vote.

“As always, all Senators remain committed to ensuring that Nigeria has free, fair and credible general elections next year, and they will continue to collaborate with the Executive, members of the public and all other stakeholders to ensure that this happens

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