At last, Jonathan signs 2013 budget

President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday signed the N4.987tn 2013 Appropriation Bill into law thereby putting an end to the bad blood between the Executive and the legislature over their differences on the budget.

The President, however, signed the budget in secret contrary to previous years when it was done in full public glare.

He signed the document in secret despite the fact that State House correspondents, who were earlier mobilised for the signing ceremony, were waiting at the lobby of his office.

Except for the period when the late President Umaru Yar’Adua was sick and members of his kitchen cabinet claimed that he signed the budget on his sick bed abroad, successive heads of government had been signing the fiscal document in the full glare of media representatives and some members of the public.

The event is usually witnessed by the leaders of the two arms of the National Assembly or their representatives.

Tuesday’s drama started at about 5.30pm when journalists, most of who had already left the Presidential Villa, were quickly mobilised to come and witness the signing ceremony, which was not included in the President’s schedule for the day.

While journalists were waiting for the event to start, the President was meeting the President of the Senate, David Mark; and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwwal, in his office.

They were joined in the meeting by Vice President Namadi Sambo; Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Director-General, Budget Office, Dr. Bright Okogu; Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Joy Emordi; and some senior presidential aides.

A few minutes before the meeting ended, a message was sent to the waiting journalists to leave as the Presidency would only communicate the signing of the budget to them through a press statement.

Photojournalists and television cameramen, who were already gearing up for the annual ritual of recording the President while signing the budget, were also asked to leave.

No sooner had the journalists returned to their base near the Council Chambers than Mark and Tambuwwal were sighted coming out of the President’s office.

Before they could be approached for comments, the two National Assembly leaders zoomed off in the same car.

Emordi, who came out shortly after the departure of the two principal officers, also declined comments when journalists approached her.

Source: PUNCH