The Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi has again exposed what he described as some undeserving allocations in the 2024 federal budget describing the budget items as disturbing.
Obi who had in his previous interventions called for a total review of the budget on the grounds that there were several misplacements of priorities tailored to further impoverish Nigerians.
Obi made his observations public in a series of tweets on his X handle on Tuesday.
In his tweet, he said, “I will remain persistent in my expressions of deep concern about the 2024 budget because of its critical importance to the lives of the citizens especially the poor in our midst. I will continue to do so until the end of the year as a matter of patriotic engagement.
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“It is evident that there are items in the budget that do not align with our current circumstances, and it is imperative to call for a review and appropriate virement.
“For instance, allocating N15 billion solely for the National Assembly hospital is unacceptable, especially when it exceeds five times the budgetary allocation to the National Hospital or the combined capital vote of our six major teaching hospitals across the nation, namely; University College Hospital, Ibadan; University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu; Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria; Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife; Jos University Teaching Hospital and University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital. This disparity reflects a low level of care for the rest of society.
“Similarly, justifying a budgetary allocation of N15.3 billion for the National Assembly library project and procurement of books, including the e-Library, in a country without a National Library is very disappointing.
“Furthermore, allocating N10 billion for the Senate’s and House of Representatives car parks and the National Assembly Recreation Centre, while allocating less to the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, is concerning.
“This level of insensitivity to the present situation and challenges faced by the people should not be tolerated by any development-minded nation.
“Every scarce resource must be directed towards productive sectors of the economy. It is time for our nation to reassess its priorities, revisit the budget, eliminate frivolous expenditures and channel our resources properly for the benefit of the people.
“No great nation is built on a foundation of waste and frivolity”, he added.
