The Nigerian Senate will now pass the 2022 budget on Tuesday, December 21.
The federal lawmakers had earlier scheduled to pass the budget on Wednesday, December 15.
However, it appeared the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly was not able to pass the budget as planned due to the delay in capturing the financial requirements of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the National Population Commission (NPC) in the 2022 budget.
The new date was announced by the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan during the plenary on Wednesday.
The Chairman Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Jibrin Barau, told newsmen that the committee had met with officials from INEC and NPC to discuss the problem of insufficient funds in the budget of the government agencies.
He said, “We had a very robust and frank interaction with INEC and the National Population Commission in respect to the complaints we have had in different quarters about the inefficiency of funds that have been provided for them in the 2022 appropriation bill.
“Because of the stance of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria that these two institutions need to be properly catered for in terms of their funding, we all know the importance of election in this country and indeed the entire world, it is the foundation of every democracy.
“I can’t tell you whether it will be passed this week or not because we are still working on it, you can make your calculations.”