The Senate was thrown into a rowdy session following a revelation of uneven distribution of federal government’s palliatives to senators.
The palliatives were meant for onward disbursement to their constituents.
The Red Chamber was debating on Tuesday the allegation made by the Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, Senator Abdul Ningi, during an interview with BBC Hausa that the 2024 budget was padded.
Ningi had claimed that a whopping N3.7 trillion was padded in the 2024 budget, causing an uproar among his fellow senators and sparking intense debates.
The session degenerated further into a rowdy session when Senator Jarigbe Jarigbe revealed that senior senators were given N500 million as palliatives for their constituents while himself and other ranking senators got N200 million.
The lawmaker claimed that as a ranking Senator, he did not get any palliative for his constituents when the monies were shared.
He said: “All of us are culpable. Some so called Senior Senators here got 500 million Naira each from the 2024 Budget, I am a ranking Senator I didn’t get anything. No Senator has a right to accuse Senator Ningi.”
This revelation, however, did not go down well with some senators and a shouting match ensued, with Senate President Godswill Akpabio struggling to restore order in the chamber.
However, after 20minutes, calm as restored to the Senate and the debate over the allegations made by Senator Ningi continued.
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2024 Budget Padding: Senator Ningi Addresses His Colleagues (video)