By Gift Chapi Odekina
The Chairman of the Appropriation Committee Rep. Muktar Betara has summoned the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and disaster management Sadiya Farouk to appear before its Committee in respect of the ongoing budget defence or the House will be forced to take a decisive action.
The Chairman in a statement noted that the minister has consistently refused to appear at the House of Representatives to defend the 202 for Budget of her ministry.
The Committee was said to have repeatedly invited the Minister for the budget defence exercise, but she would not honour the invitation.
He said “Sadiya Farouq, rather than appear before the Committee, kept delegating the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Nura Alkali, to do this function”
“Alkali had made herself available, but the committee was uncomfortable with the Minister’s behaviours, making it to reject the Permanent Secretary’s appearance”
The Committee is insisting that the Minister, who superintends the spendings in the ministry should come forward to account and not the PS.
Approached by journalists on the action, Chairman House Committee on Appropriation, Hon Muktar Betar, said he would never approve the PS to defend the budget.
Betara insisted that Sadiya Farouq must be at the committee in person to defend her ministry’s budget.
The Minister had overseen huge spendings of national funds on paliative in the 2020 and 2021 budgets, and the Committee would want her to account for them.
ENDS.
