By Emman Ovuakporie & Johnbosco Agbakwuru

ABUJA—FORMER speaker of the House of Representatives and governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal, yesterday told critical stakeholders in parliamentary affairs that there was need to co-opt business leaders, farmers, civil society organisations into Nigeria’s budget planning process to enable the country achieve success.

Speaking at the unveiling of Order Paper.org/a national colloquim on ‘A Conversation On Reforming The Budgetary Process In Nigeria,’ Tambuwal said: “Paucity of knowledge is the bane of our budgetary process, there is need for us to make the process lucid and give it the dexterity it demands.

“Our budget process lacks the passion it deserves, there is near absence of planning and the budget is executed without the zeal and passion it demands.

“In the US, it takes two solid years to plan a budget so there is no need to leave the task to only NASS we need to involve NG0S, business leaders and farmers to contribute in the planning of the budget process.

“It is our firm belief that if more stakeholders, especially   the major players in the process, can gain greater insight into the whole system of budgeting, and if the National Assembly as an Arm of Government can attain the dexterity demanded to examine the budgetary estimates submitted annually by the President, there will be less attrition and mistrust between the two Arms of Government.

“ One of the problems we have in this country is near absence of planning in our budgetary process.   If at all we are interested in making progress in our efforts to reform our budgetary process, we have to begin to get our planning and budgeting right.

‘’Can you imagine from Rolling Plans and Annual Budgets through to Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, and Annual Budgets, it has always been a routine? Our planning and budget design is executed without zeal and passion and it is similarly implemented without much national commitment.

‘’Perhaps that was why appropriations in this democratic dispensation have had a chequered history which is a common knowledge.”