President Muhammadu Buhari has requested the National Assembly to re-allocate the sum of N164,104,792, 65 in the 2018 budget to be spent on the 2019 election.
He said the re-allocation could be through virement or supplementation of the 2018 budget.
The request, the president said, followed the budget submitted to the Presidency by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and security agencies over the election.
The total of the budget iss N242 billion.
President of the Senate made the request known on Tuesday at the plenary while reading a letter transmitted to the Senate to that effect by the president.
The letter reads in part: “As you are aware, the 2019 general election is scheduled to be conducted early in 2019. To ensure that adequate arrangements are made for free and fair election, it has become necessary to appropriate funds to enable the relevant agencies to commence preparations.
“INEC and the security agencies have accordingly recently submitted their requests and these have been subjected to the usual budget evaluation.
“I’m proposing that the sum of N164,104,792,65 be provided for through virement or supplementation of the 2018 budget. I propose that the balance of N78,340,530, 535 mostly related to personnel allowances, fuelling and other costs not required until election proper be provided in their 2019 budget…
“I’m therefore submitting for your consideration the reinstatement of most of the most critical of such cuts totalling N67,742,216,150 which are summarised in page one. The total amount required to be provided for in the 2018 budget for the 2019 general election and to restore the identified critical projects to the amount earlier proposed is therefore N228,854, 800, 250.”
The president said considering that the implementation of the 2018 budget of N9.12 trillion was challenging, he did not find it expedient that it should be increased.
He appealed to the National Assembly to, in the interest of the nation, consider the relocation of some of the funds appropriated for the new projects which were inserted into the 2018 budget proposal totalling N 578, 319, 951, 904 to cover the sum of N228, 854,800, 205 required.
