The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has said the executive is yet to receive the 2017 Appropriation Bill from the National Assembly.
The lawmakers had last week passed the Appropriation Bill, raising the figure from N7.28 trillion proposed by President Muhammadu Buhari in December last year, to N7.44 trillion.
Mohammed disclosed this to State House correspondents on Wednesday after the federal executive council meeting presided over by the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo.
According to him, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udo Udoma, was in possession of an “advanced copy” which ministers would use to check if there are discrepancies between what they sent to the National Assembly and what was returned.
“Not yet but at least the minister of budget and national planning has gotten an advanced copy of what was passed and that is what we need to look at and compare to what we sent. It has not been transmitted officially to the Presidency,” Mohammed said.
He pointed out that it was on Wednesday morning that the minister of national planning informed the council that the budget has been passed.
He added: “He has now sent to us copies of the passed budget. We need to look at it to see if there are any discrepancies and report back to the minister for harmonisation.
“The ministry of budget and national planning will make the implementation of the 2016 budget public. They have told us that about N1.2 trillion was released for capital expenditure.”
When asked who will sign the budget between the Acting President and President Buhari who is on medical vacation in London, he replied “When it is transmitted to the Presidency that decision will be taken.
On the two ministers, Stephen Ocheni (Kogi) and Suleiman Hassan (Gombe) who were confirmed by the Senate but yet to be sworn in by the Acting President, the minister assured that they will be sworn in due course.
