• Demands FG revenue profile
From ADETUTU FOLASADE-KOYI, Abuja
The National Assembly committees on appropriation and finance have summoned allergenic-generating agencies of the Federal Government to a meeting in Abuja tomorrow.
The meeting, Daily Sun gathered, is being convened ahead of the consideration of the 2014-2016 Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), crucial for the receipt, consideration and eventual passage of the 2014 Appropriation Bill.
Key federal revenue-generating agencies invited for the meeting include the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Nigeria Inland Maritime Authority Service (NIMASA); and the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), among many others.
Invitation letters for the meeting with chief executives of the revenue-generating agencies, signed by Senate Finance Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, were reportedly sent last week, with a directive that they furnish the National Assembly with full details of all revenues generated till date and evidence of payment of such monies to government coffers.
Two weeks ago, the Senate suspended consideration of the MTEF/FSP after Makarfi, asked for extension of time to enable the joint committee conclude work at securing government's revenue profile for the 2014 budget.
Although Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma-Egba, presented the MTEF/FSP in the Upper Chamber, the issue was suspended following complaints from lawmakers that the revenue profile of government was not attached.
In his lead debate, Ndoma-Egba said revenue assumptions for 2014 include crude oil production projected at 2.3883 million barrels per day as against 2.2526 mbpd in 2013. He also noted that the crude oil price benchmark proposed for 2014 is USD74pb,USD75pb for 2015 and USD76 for 2016.
The framework sent to the National Assembly is expected to guide the lawmakers in considering the 2014 budget which was downgraded to N4.6 trillion from the initial N4.77 trillion earlier submitted in the MTEF/FSP.
The document said: "The extra capital budget of about N273.14 billion under the SURE-P scheme will further complement the overall capital outlay in 2014. It is worth emphasising that when the SURE-P budget is added to the outlay in the regular budget, the consolidated expenditure rises to N4.77 trillion, of which the consolidated capital budget in 2014 is N1.45 trillion (about 30.44% of total expenditure)."
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