PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu is set to soon present the 2024 Supplementary Budget to the National Assembly (NASS).
“I submitted the last budget to you,” the President said when he addressed a joint sitting of the National Assembly today.
“You expeditiously passed it. We are walking the talk. I will soon bring the Year 2024 (Supplementary) Appropriation Bill. That is just for your information,” the President said in his terse speech at the joint sitting to mark the Silver Jubilee Of Nigeria’s 4th Republic.
In his response, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, said, “Thank you, Mr President, we will be expecting the Supplementary Appropriation Bill of 2024 as soon as possible.”
Also, at the joint sitting which coincides with the first anniversary of the Tinubu administration, the President confirmed ‘Nigeria, we hail thee’ as the “latest national anthem”.
Tinubu said, “You sang out the latest national anthem, ‘Nigeria, we hail thee’. This is our diversity, representing all characters and how we blend to be brothers and sisters.”
President Tinubu urged the Senate and the House of Representatives to maintain their collaborative efforts with the administration for the continuous progress and development of the nation.
“We have no other choice; it is our nation. No other institution or personality will help us unless we do it ourselves. No amount of aid from foreign countries or any other nation (will fix us), they take care of themselves first. Let us work together as we are doing to build our nation, not only for us but for generations unborn,” he said.
He emphasized the need for self-reliance and collective effort in nation-building, stressing that external aid cannot substitute for the nations own determination and cooperation.
Recall that despite the approval of the ₦28.7 trillion 2024 Appropriation Bill early in the year, the naira’s value has been unstable, experiencing fluctuations against the US dollar.
In February, the naira plummeted to over ₦2,000/$’1 just weeks after the President’s budget was implemented.
Since the unification of foreign exchange windows, the currency has experienced exceptional volatility versus the US dollar and currently, it trades at roughly ₦1500/$1.
Following the implementation of the budget, named the 2024 ‘Budget of Renewed Hope’, some economic challenges have been faced, such as the sharp depreciation of the naira.
