The President of the Senate, Alhaji Ahmad Lawan, says the National Assembly will pass the 2023 Appropriation Bill of N20.5 trillion before the end of December.
He made this known on Tuesday in Abuja at a reception organised to celebrate the national honour of Grand Commander of the Order of Niger (GCON) bestowed on him by President Muhamadu Buhari.
Recall that Buhari on Friday presented the 2023 budget before a joint session of the National Assembly.
The budget is tagged “Budget of Fiscal Sustainability and Transition”.
Lawan, in a speech at the reception, said that the Senate would begin debate on the bill on Wednesday.
“Tomorrow, we will start the debate on the 2023 appropriation bill. Like we did for the three previous sessions, we are going to pass it before the end of December.
“We are purposeful and we are focused. It’s not for nothing that the presidency decided to honour 12 of us.
“They know our contribution to not only the administration of good governance, but also stability of the polity.
“I strongly believe that the national assembly of today has provided so much inputs into political stability in Nigeria. The records are there.
“People can look at what we have done and also those things that we didn’t do. I believe that our colleagues in the 9th senate worked so hard.”
On the number of female senators, the senate president said: “We don’t know why the number is small but they have capacity. These are very experienced legislators.
“We wish to see more female legislators. That’s only logical,” he said.
On the national honour, Lawan said that it was a special day for the National Assembly.
“The number of recipients from the Senate this time is the highest. Every senator deserves the award.”
He said that his fellow colleagues were his good friends who ensured that the productivity in the senate rose.
“We judiciously agreed that anything that will be good for Nigerians must be done.
“By the time we are leaving in 2023, we will leave with our heads high.”
