The Senate Committee on Appropriation on Thursday, took Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, to task over the government’s handling of fuel subsidy savings and the status of the 2024 budget implementation, particularly concerning capital expenditure. Edun was also questioned about the scale of debt servicing and how the government planned to allocate funds for debt repayment in 2025.
Edun’s appearance before the Senate was part of the defense of the 2025 budget. However, his session took a dramatic turn when lawmakers, led by Senator Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central), raised concerns about the transparency and utilization of the savings from the removal of the fuel subsidy in June 2023.
Senator Ningi pointedly asked Edun how much had been saved from the subsidy removal, how much had been spent, and whether the savings had contributed to the implementation of the 2024 budget, particularly in terms of capital expenditure. He also pressed the minister on the actual amount spent on debt servicing in 2024 and the anticipated figures for 2025.
Edun, caught off guard by the questions, struggled to provide concrete answers and instead requested that the session be moved behind closed doors for a more detailed response. He said, “Are we in a closed-door session? If we are not in a closed-door session, I will humbly seek for that, for detailed explanations on the questions asked.”
The Committee Chairman, Senator Solomon Olamilekan (APC, Ogun West), granted Edun’s request, asking journalists to leave the room to facilitate a closed-door discussion.
In addition to Edun, other key officials were also grilled during the budget defense session. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu, faced tough questions about the performance of the 2024 budget and his ministry’s plans for 2025. Both Edun and Bagudu were pressed by senators on the specifics of their proposals and their performance in the previous year.
The Director General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, and the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Ali Mohammed, also faced scrutiny from the Senate Committee on Information and National Orientation. The NOA was questioned about its National Identity Project, which the Senate committee said appeared to be largely unknown to Nigerians. Issa-Onilu defended the project, emphasizing its importance for national development and growth.
Similarly, the NAN was ordered to reconcile the figures from its 2024 budget implementation before it could proceed with seeking approval for its 2025 budget proposal.
The Senate’s intense questioning of these officials reflects growing concerns over the proper management and transparency of government finances, especially in light of the fuel subsidy removal and the country’s rising debt burden.
