Nigeria’s House of Representatives has given its approval to President Bola Tinubu’s request for a substantial sum of five hundred billion Naira for palliatives. This allocation is specifically designed to alleviate the impact of the fuel subsidy removal on the Nigerian population.
The House granted its approval following a thorough process that involved the Bill for Alteration of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act undergoing first and second readings, review by the Committee of the Whole, and ultimately, third reading.
During the debate on the passage of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Amendment bill, Julius Ihonvbere, the leader of the House, passionately urged his colleagues to support this amendment due to its vital significance for the country. He emphasised that ever since the government removed the fuel subsidy, there have been numerous pleas for the implementation of measures to mitigate its effects.
Furthermore, he highlighted the anticipation of Nigerians regarding President Tinubu’s proposal for 500 billion Naira for palliatives. Nigerians are waiting to hear from us” he declared. “They are waiting to see how we are going to handle this.”
Kingsley Chinda, the minority leader, commended the government for proposing the palliatives as a commendable initiative. However, he stressed the necessity of administering it in a manner that would genuinely impact the citizens.
Honorable Beni Lar, in her contribution to the Bill, expressed her belief that these funds would significantly alleviate the hardship caused by the subsidy removal.
The foresight displayed by President Tinubu garnered widespread praise from other lawmakers as well. In a letter addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, President Tinubu requested the parliament’s amendment of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Act to incorporate the provision of N500 billion in palliatives for the citizens. The letter was read during Wednesday’s plenary session.
“I write to request the approval of the House of Representatives for an amendment of the 2022 appropriation act in accordance with the law.
“The request has become necessary in other to source for funds to provide necessary palliatives to cushion the effect of the recent removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria.
“The sum of N500 billion only has been extracted from the 2022 appropriation act of N819.536 for the provision of palliatives to Nigerians to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal. I expect that the House will speedily consider the request,” the letter read.