Capital Votes: MP's Seek Explanation On Non-Implementation

ABUJA, February 02, (THEWILL) - The House of Representatives today queried the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru over a letter purportedly written by a director in the ministry to the nation’s embassies and foreign mission directing them not to implement the 2011 capital votes in the Appropriation Act.

Chairman of the House committee on Foreign Affairs, Hon. Nnena Elendu-Ukeje had at the budget defence session with the ministry observed that the letter stopping foreign missions from implementing the capital budget was not only subverting the Appropriation Act of 2011 as a law of the parliament, but also crippling activities of the foreign missions.

Some of the embassies and missions according to the lawmakers include Ghana, China, Mali Iran, Algeria Indonesia and Guinea Bissau amongst others.

A member of the committee, Hon. Davies Sekonte (PDP, Rivers), who brought a copy of the letter dated January 10, 2012, warning diplomats in some select countries not to implement the capital components of their budgets, threatening to hold their respective Finance Attachés’ accountable for any breach of the directives, told the minister that the act was a violation of the Appropriation act.
 
In his response, the Minister described the letter as “an administrative circular”  borne out of past experiences when during transitional periods, missions engage in some unhealthy practices in expenditure, adding that the missions could still carry out the implementation since they had up to March 31, 2011 when the budget life expires.

Speaking further, the Minister explained that what accounted for the seeming huge allocation to grants and contributions to foreign organisations was because such payments, though appropriated in naira were paid in US dollars, explaining that just last week the country made its contribution of 16 million dollars (3.3 billion Naira) to the African Union.

He said Nigeria’s contribution to the United Nations in the same year was N300 million naira while that of the Common Wealth was N285 million naira, noting that there was usually an annual increment.