President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the 2023 Appropriation Bill into law.
The President signed the 2023 transition budget on Tuesday at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, in the presence of Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President Ahmad Lawan, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, and other members of the Federal Executive Council.
Speaking at the event, President Buhari said his administration would “speed up” critical infrastructure projects nationwide as it raced toward the finish line on May 29, this year.
The budget is N21.83 trillion aggregate expenditure, an increase of N1.32 trillion over the initial executive proposal of N20.51 trillion.
The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, had told journalists at the weekend, following a closed-door meeting with the President at the Villa, that the President would sign the 2023 budget on Tuesday.
Senator Lawan said: “We are looking forward to Mr President signing the Appropriation Bill 2023, by the grace of God, on Tuesday.
“This is because we signed the documents yesterday, having lost some time because of some anomalous figures we had in the bill presented to the National Assembly.
“But thank God, the National Assembly, in both chambers, has passed the Appropriation Bill 2023 on Wednesday, and I’m sure that Mr President and his team on the executive side will work on what we have done. And the first thing on Tuesday, the first official working day of the year, I believe that Mr President will be signing the Appropriation Bill 2023.”
Bello Wakili