Commotion enveloped the House of Representatives plenary yesterday as lawmakers clashed over a motion seeking to summon President Bola Tinubu to explain delays in the implementation of the 2025 Appropriation Act.
The motion which was predicated upon the inability of the executive to fund the 2024, 2025 and 2026 budgets, despite the appropriation and approvals from the National Assembly, created a serious tension in the lower chamber, with majority, including members of the ruling party, supporting the invitation of the President to the Parliament.
The motion sponsored by the member representing Aba North/Aba South Federal Constituency of Abia State, Hon. Alex Ikwechegh, decried the poor funding of appropriated budgets and persistent delays in the release of capital funds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
This came on the heels of a constitutional point of order raised by the Member representing Okpe/Sapele/Uvwie Federal Constituency of Delta State, Hon. Benedict Etanabene, who informed the House that he had seen a circular from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation announcing the suspension of funding for zonal intervention projects pending fresh verification requirements.
The debate quickly divided the chamber, with lawmakers across party lines expressing frustration over what they described as the slow implementation of projects approved by the National Assembly.
While the motion enjoyed overwhelming support, attempts by some members to oppose aspects of it were drowned out by loud shouts and protests from their colleagues, forcing the Speaker to repeatedly call for order.
Moving the substantive motion titled, “Urgent need to address the poor funding of appropriated budgets and delayed releases to MDAs as revealed during the 2026 budget defence sessions,” Ikwechegh argued that the credibility of the appropriation process depends not only on the passage of the budget but also on the timely release and utilisation of funds.
He said: “The powers of appropriation in the National Assembly, and the credibility of the budget rests not only on the size of the figures appropriated, but on the fidelity, timeliness with which appropriation funds are released, cash-backed, and utilized for ministries, departments, and agencies.
“The House also notes that during the 2026 budget defence sessions, honourable Ministers and heads of MDAs disclosed deeply troubling levels of funding of 2025 budget, including sectors that recorded zero capital releases for the entire fiscal year, and others that received only a token, a fraction of their appropriated capital votes.
“The House is aware that these disclosures are consistent with repeated protests staged in 2025 and early 2026 by indigenous contractors of Nigeria that have invested heavily to do business with the Nigerian government at the Federal Ministry of Finance and at the gates of the National Assembly; on one occasion, disrupting plenary sittings because due to unpaid certificates for completed and verified projects with many contractors unable to service bank loans obtained to execute government projects.”
Ikwechegh recalled that President Tinubu had, at a Federal Executive Council meeting on December 10, 2025, directed the immediate settlement of verified contractor liabilities estimated at about N1.5tn and approved the establishment of an inter-ministerial committee to reconcile records and facilitate payment.
According to him, “The House is also aware that His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Federal Executive Council of 10th December, 2025 expressed grave displeasure at the backlog, directed the immediate settlement of verified contractor liabilities of about N1.5tn and constituted an inter-Ministerial Committee to harmonise records and deliver a lasting funding solution, declaring his readiness of the government to even borrow when necessary to settled verified obligations.
“The House is further aware that directive of the National Assembly approved the borrowing in excess of N1tn specifically to finance the settlement of outstanding obligations on completed and verified capital projects, in addition to dedicated provisions in the 2026 Appropriation Act for contractor liabilities, while the Honourable Minister for Finance have announced the clearance of substantial sums announcements, which contractors dispute as partial announcements.”
However, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas ruled that the aspect of the debate seeking to summon the President could not be adopted, describing such a move as inconsistent with parliamentary practice.
According to him, “the issue of summoning the President as included in the debate of Ikwechegh cannot be adopted by the House,” noting that “such action is unparliamentary.”
Despite his effort to save the day, the lawmakers appeared agitated and resolute to revolt against the President.
Some of them who got the return tickets to contest the 2027 elections feel they may not have anything on ground to campaign with, as the Zonal Intervention Projects appear suspended; while those who lost their tickets feel it was because of non implementation of constituency projects that accounted largely for their lost.
.The commotion threw the chamber into a rowdy session, with Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, taking several minutes to restore calm.
The presiding officer said motions raised on a point of privilege are not subject to debate.
Following that, Alex Mascot, a lawmaker from Abia, moved a motion on urgent public importance, saying that security agencies were not being adequately funded despite the federal government spending billions of naira.
He said Tinubu should be invited to address lawmakers over the budget implementation fiasco.
The motion was greeted with shouts of approval from many lawmakers.
Chairman, Committee on Navy, Yusuf Gagdi, in his contribution, kicked against the proposal to summon the President, saying government officials saddled with the task of managing the budget should be the ones invited to appear before parliament.
However, as Gagdi was making his submission, lawmakers pushing for the summon of the President heckled him with shouts of “sit down.”
Abbas then called for a division to allow lawmakers to vote on the motion, but the proposal was rejected.
After normalcy returned, the House resolved to summon relevant ministers concerned with the management of the budget to explain the abysmal implementation of the national budgets.
The House also set up a 12-man Ad-hoc Committee, chaired by the chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Abubakar Bichi, to interface with the relevant fiscal authorities on the state of releases, settlement of contractor liabilities and utilisation of approved borrowings.
Earlier, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmaker from Delta State, Ben Etanabene, while speaking on a Point of Order, drew the attention of the House to a circular from the office of the Accountant General, directing a suspension of releases for ZIPs.
Etanabene said: “I wish, Mr. Speaker, that the Constitution be tested. I want to urge this House to agree that we summon Mr. President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria together with his financial team to please come to this House in line with the provision of the Constitution to brief Nigerians exactly what is happening, because the stories are not complimentary at all.
“We cannot explain to the constituents what is happening. Today, we collect money. We will not be able to give a proper explanation for it. The budgets are not being implemented. Presently, in Nigeria today, we are implementing 24, 25 and 26 budgets running concurrently. This is not in the best interest of everybody.
“So, Mr. Speaker, I wish to move the motion that this House, you know, invite Mr. President to come soonest to brief this House to explain and make us know why the need for this circular has been released.”
Credit: The Sun