................However, more information was brought to light monday on what transpired with respect to the Calabar-Lagos rail project, when a senior official in the presidency disclosed that its omission from the budget was caused by the Budget Office.
This came as the Chairman on the Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Gbenga Ashafa confirmed yesterday in a press statement that Amaechi did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee, which contained the said project.
Speaking with THISDAY in Abuja on Monday, the presidency source, who pleaded anonymity, said when the error committed by the Budget Office was discovered, Ameachi quickly forwarded a memo to the Budget Office, drawing its attention to the error and it was quickly corrected.
The source added: “Minister Ameachi did not stop there, he followed it up with several meetings with Senator Gbenga Ashafa and during the defence of the budget, Amaechi informed the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation project and indeed sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee, which contained the said project.
“I can tell you that it was the House of Representatives that removed it for obvious reasons. The ministry was harassed by the House members during the defence of the budget, demanding for one thing or the other. If Hon. Abdulmumim said the Lagos-Calabar Rail project was not in the original budget, let him also show you where N92 billion was provided for the Lagos-Kano rail project in the original budget that he is making reference to?
“On the rehabilitation of some airports, the Ministry of Transportation did make provision for them in the budget we submitted, and the National Assembly on its own appropriated N4 billion to this. They are just lying. And we challenged them to produce the report the Senate Committee on Land Transport sent to the Ministry of Transportation.”
Senator Ashafa also confirmed that Amaechi did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and the omission was subsequently corrected.
According to the senator, “I have carefully followed the news making the rounds in relation to the budget presented to the National Assembly and what was defended by the Ministry of Transportation before the Senate Committee on Land Transport which I have the privilege of chairing.
“The focal point of controversy seems to be the Lagos-Calabar railway modernisation project and the completion of the Idu-Kaduna rail line.
“I confirm that the Lagos-Calabar rail line was not in the original document that was presented to the National Assembly by the executive.
“However, subsequently, during the budget defence session before the Senate Committee on Land Transport, the Minister for Transportation,Rotimi Amaechi, did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and indeed sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee which contained the said project.”
The senator added that the minister had noted during the defence of the budget that the amount needed for the counterpart funding for both the Lagos to Kano and Lagos to Calabar rail modernisation projects was in the sum of N120 billion, being N60 billion per project.
Senator Ashafa said while the committee did not completely agree with all the changes made in the subsequent document, being fully aware of the critical importance of the rail sector to the development of the country, members of the Senate Committee on Land Transport keyed into the laudable (Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation) project and found ways of appropriating funds for the project without exceeding the envelope provided for the ministry.
“In so doing, the committee observed that the Lagos-Kano rail rehabilitation project had been allocated the sum of N52 billion as against the sum of N60 billion, which the minister requested as counterpart funding while no allocation whatsoever was made for the Lagos-Calabar rail line,” the Senator further stated.
“Hence, the sum of N54 billion that was discovered by the Senate Committee on Land Transport to be floating in the budget of the Ministry of Transportation as presented by the executive was injected into augmenting the funds needed for counterpart funding of both projects (Lagos-Kano and Lagos-Calabar Rail modernisation), as at the time the committee defended its report before the Senate Committee on Appropriation,” he said.
He stated that the Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation project was therefore included in the Senate Committee on Land Transport’s recommendation to the Senate Committee on Appropriation.
On the Idu-Kaduna rail completion project, Senator Ashafa said his committee did not alter what was provided in the budget as sent by the executive, being approximately N18 billion, adding that he was equally surprised to read in newspapers that the amount allocated to the said project was reduced by N8 billion.
He said while he would have preferred to wait till next Tuesday, when the National Assembly reconvenes in order to have the benefit of viewing the details of the budget that was conveyed to the executive as passed, he was compelled to place the facts in a proper perspective as it relates to the activities of his committee.
“Without prejudice to the considerations and powers of the Senate Committee on Appropriation with regard to the appropriation process, the foregoing is the true reflection of what transpired at the committee level with respect to the Land Transport sector with the Ministry of Transport,” he further stated..........................
Excerpt.....
http://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2016/04/12/calabar-lagos-rail-project-that-was-never-listed-triggers-a-spat/
This came as the Chairman on the Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Gbenga Ashafa confirmed yesterday in a press statement that Amaechi did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee, which contained the said project.
Speaking with THISDAY in Abuja on Monday, the presidency source, who pleaded anonymity, said when the error committed by the Budget Office was discovered, Ameachi quickly forwarded a memo to the Budget Office, drawing its attention to the error and it was quickly corrected.
The source added: “Minister Ameachi did not stop there, he followed it up with several meetings with Senator Gbenga Ashafa and during the defence of the budget, Amaechi informed the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation project and indeed sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee, which contained the said project.
“I can tell you that it was the House of Representatives that removed it for obvious reasons. The ministry was harassed by the House members during the defence of the budget, demanding for one thing or the other. If Hon. Abdulmumim said the Lagos-Calabar Rail project was not in the original budget, let him also show you where N92 billion was provided for the Lagos-Kano rail project in the original budget that he is making reference to?
“On the rehabilitation of some airports, the Ministry of Transportation did make provision for them in the budget we submitted, and the National Assembly on its own appropriated N4 billion to this. They are just lying. And we challenged them to produce the report the Senate Committee on Land Transport sent to the Ministry of Transportation.”
Senator Ashafa also confirmed that Amaechi did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and the omission was subsequently corrected.
According to the senator, “I have carefully followed the news making the rounds in relation to the budget presented to the National Assembly and what was defended by the Ministry of Transportation before the Senate Committee on Land Transport which I have the privilege of chairing.
“The focal point of controversy seems to be the Lagos-Calabar railway modernisation project and the completion of the Idu-Kaduna rail line.
“I confirm that the Lagos-Calabar rail line was not in the original document that was presented to the National Assembly by the executive.
“However, subsequently, during the budget defence session before the Senate Committee on Land Transport, the Minister for Transportation,Rotimi Amaechi, did inform the committee of the omission of the Lagos-Calabar rail project and indeed sent a supplementary copy of the ministry’s budget to the committee which contained the said project.”
The senator added that the minister had noted during the defence of the budget that the amount needed for the counterpart funding for both the Lagos to Kano and Lagos to Calabar rail modernisation projects was in the sum of N120 billion, being N60 billion per project.
Senator Ashafa said while the committee did not completely agree with all the changes made in the subsequent document, being fully aware of the critical importance of the rail sector to the development of the country, members of the Senate Committee on Land Transport keyed into the laudable (Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation) project and found ways of appropriating funds for the project without exceeding the envelope provided for the ministry.
“In so doing, the committee observed that the Lagos-Kano rail rehabilitation project had been allocated the sum of N52 billion as against the sum of N60 billion, which the minister requested as counterpart funding while no allocation whatsoever was made for the Lagos-Calabar rail line,” the Senator further stated.
“Hence, the sum of N54 billion that was discovered by the Senate Committee on Land Transport to be floating in the budget of the Ministry of Transportation as presented by the executive was injected into augmenting the funds needed for counterpart funding of both projects (Lagos-Kano and Lagos-Calabar Rail modernisation), as at the time the committee defended its report before the Senate Committee on Appropriation,” he said.
He stated that the Lagos-Calabar rail modernisation project was therefore included in the Senate Committee on Land Transport’s recommendation to the Senate Committee on Appropriation.
On the Idu-Kaduna rail completion project, Senator Ashafa said his committee did not alter what was provided in the budget as sent by the executive, being approximately N18 billion, adding that he was equally surprised to read in newspapers that the amount allocated to the said project was reduced by N8 billion.
He said while he would have preferred to wait till next Tuesday, when the National Assembly reconvenes in order to have the benefit of viewing the details of the budget that was conveyed to the executive as passed, he was compelled to place the facts in a proper perspective as it relates to the activities of his committee.
“Without prejudice to the considerations and powers of the Senate Committee on Appropriation with regard to the appropriation process, the foregoing is the true reflection of what transpired at the committee level with respect to the Land Transport sector with the Ministry of Transport,” he further stated..........................
Excerpt.....
http://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2016/04/12/calabar-lagos-rail-project-that-was-never-listed-triggers-a-spat/
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