Mahdi Shehu, a social analyst, has attacked Nigerian budget preparation and utilization, claiming that it benefits a select few at the expense of the majority.
He disclosed in a recent interview on AIT that the Nigerian budget is designed to benefit a select few rather than the general populace.
According to him, Nigerian budgets are a yearly ritual in which the same numbers are rehashed with little to no effect on the lives of regular Nigerians.
“Why should the state government allocate ten years each year for tractor purchases?” he said. Why haven’t you changed your fertilizer and pilgrimage budgets over the years?
Budgets, in his opinion, ought to focus on addressing pressing societal issues and entail direct public consultation.
Is there anyone who can tell me of a time when a senator or governor reached out to the lowest members of society and sought their opinion before creating a budget? Not one!
By bringing up the contentious $210 trillion that is purportedly missing from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), Shehu further demonstrated the extent of corruption in the nation. “Please refrain from discussing Nigeria’s budget. Every year, we perform an act with figures who vanish like ghosts. “You see them today, and tomorrow they’re gone,” he remarked.
He called on the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to take decisive action.
“He is under a mandate. He has to put it into action. Please, he needs to act right away and quit teasing us.”
In his closing remarks, Mahdi Shehu warned that corruption is ruining Nigeria and urged immediate action to prosecute those responsible.
READ MORE: LAD REPORTING
