Senator representing Bauchi Central senatorial district in the National Assembly, Abdul Ningi, has said he did not accuse President Bola Tinubu of presenting two versions of the 2024 budget.

Ningi, the Chairman, Northern Senators Forum, said the Presidency quoted him out of context in a press statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Sunday.

The Bauchi senator said this while addressing journalists in Abuja on Monday, in reaction to the statement by the Presidency over the interview he granted to the BBC Hause about this year’s budget.

At the weekend, Ningi said that the budget passed by the National Assembly for the 2024 fiscal year is N25 trillion while the one being implemented by the Presidency is N28.7 trillion.

But in his reaction, Onanuga refuted the claims saying, “We don’t expect a ranking senator not to pay due attention to details before making wild claims.”

In a counter-interaction, Ningi said, “At no time did I say Bola Ahmed Tinubu is implementing N25 trillion budget. I am here to attempt to summarise to you members of the National Assembly Press Corps.

“What I said in my Hausa interview about a week today, I was speaking on the state of the nation, and among other things, I lamented how the north found itself at the receiving end.

“The first example I made and I said was my president from my own party, Goodluck Jonathan for his failure to dredge the river Niger. I also mentioned former President Buhari for his failure to do anything on Ajaokuta, to do anything on Mambilla, to do anything as small as the road from Abuja, Kano and Kaduna.

“And I came to President Tinubu and I said I don’t blame Tinubu for doing what he is doing because while he was campaigning, northern leaders particularly from his party have not extracted commitment that if he wins, what he will do for the north, that I said. I also said in the course of our perusing the budget which Onanuga seems to have dwelt on.”