– Chibuike Amaechi has been told by four committees of the House if Representatives to spend N234billion in April or lose funding for his ministry in 2017 budget
– The committees on Aviation; Land Transport; Maritime Safety and Administration; Ports, Harbours and Waterways said they want to ensure that the ministry used its allocations in the 2016 budget well
– The four committees paid a visit to the headquarters of the transportation ministry on Tuesday, April 4
Transport minister Amaechi is the immediate past governor of Rivers state
The National Assembly has threatened to cut the funding of the Transportation ministry under former Rivers state governor Chibuike Amaechi.
Vanguard reports that four committees of the House of Representatives have expressed dissatisfaction over the manner of implementation of the Federal Ministry of Transportation’s 2016 Budget and have threatened zero allocation in 2017 budget.
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The four committees on Aviation; Land Transport; Maritime Safety and Administration; Ports, Harbours and Waterways said this while on a visit to the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, April 4.
Chairman of the Committee on Maritime Safety and Administration Mohammed Bago said the ministry presented different documents to the committees which did not contain facts.
According to Bago, the ministry received N243 billion and has yet to spend it.
He noted that if the money was not used before the end of the month, the ministry would receive zero allocation in 2017.
He said: “The different positions made to the committee of the house on both land transport, ports and harbour, maritime safety and administration as well as aviation has varied. We have received three different documents till date and all of them are not consistent and that is why we have asked for a new document to ascertain the value of what this project is all about.”
“We are not going to appropriate on this budget until we have the fact and figure and if we do not have the facts and figure, the ministry of transport will get zero allocation. They have received 243 billion and they have not spent it when Ministry of Health needs money because people are dying of meningitis, Nigerian soldiers are dying in Sambisa, no money to fund the soldiers. The ministry of transportation is seating on billions of Nigerians’ naira released to it and is not utilised.”
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Chairman of the Committee on Ports, Harbours and Waterways Patrick Asadu said the lawmakers wanted to ensure that money given to the ministry was well spent.
Meanwhile, ZENITHBLOG.com gathered that Amaechi was beaten by Babatunde Raji Fashola, the minister of Power, Works and Housing and former governor of Lagos state to the City People Magazine minister of the year award.
The award ceremony was held at the Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja on Sunday, April 2.
In his remarks, Mr Fashola praised his team which he said comprises of President Buhari and other ministers.
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