The rosy relationship between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Members of the National Assembly may have collapsed, as the majority of Members of the House of Representatives, on Wednesday, insisted that the President and his economic team must appear before the Parliament.
The motion, which was predicated upon the inability of the executive to fund the 2025 budget, despite the appropriation and approvals from the National Assembly, created a serious tension on the floor of the House and divided the Lawmakers, with the majority, including Members of the ruling party, supporting the invitation of the President to the Parliament.
The motion, sponsored by the Member representing Aba North/Aba South Federal Constituency of Abia State, Hon. Alex Ikwechegh, decried the poor funding of appropriated budgets and the persistent delays in the release of capital funds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
This came on the heels of a Constitutional Point of Order raised by the Member representing Okpe/Sapele/Uvwie Federal Constituency of Delta State, Hon. Benedict Etanabene, who informed the House that he had seen a circular from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation announcing the suspension of funding for zonal intervention projects pending fresh verification requirements.
The debate quickly divided the chamber, with lawmakers across party lines expressing frustration over what they described as the slow implementation of projects approved by the National Assembly.
While the motion enjoyed overwhelming support, attempts by some members to oppose aspects of it were drowned out by loud shouts and protests from their colleagues, forcing the Speaker to call for order repeatedly.
Moving the substantive motion titled, “Urgent need to address the poor funding of appropriated budgets and delayed releases to MDAs as revealed during the 2026 budget defence sessions,” Ikwechegh argued that the credibility of the appropriation process depends not only on the passage of the budget but also on the timely release and utilisation of funds.
He said, “The powers of appropriation in the National Assembly, and the credibility of the budget, rest not only on the size of the figures appropriated, but on the fidelity, timeliness with which appropriation funds are released, cash-backed, and utilised for ministries, departments, and agencies.
“The House also notes that during the 2026 budget defence sessions, honourable Ministers and heads of MDAs disclosed deeply troubling levels of funding of the 2025 budget, including sectors that recorded zero capital releases for the entire fiscal year, and others that received only a token, a fraction of their appropriated capital votes.
“The House is aware that these disclosures are consistent with repeated protests staged in 2025 and early 2026 by indigenous contractors of Nigeria that have invested heavily to do business with the Nigerian government at the Federal Ministry of Finance and at the gates of the National Assembly; on one occasion, disrupting plenary sittings because due to unpaid certificates for completed and verified projects with many contractors unable to service bank loans obtained to execute government projects.”
Ikwechegh recalled that President Tinubu had, at a Federal Executive Council meeting on 10 December 2025, directed the immediate settlement of verified contractor liabilities estimated at N1.5tn and approved the establishment of an inter-ministerial committee to reconcile records and facilitate payment.
According to him, “The House is also aware that His Excellency President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Federal Executive Council of 10 December 2025 expressed grave displeasure at the backlog, directed the immediate settlement of verified contractor liabilities of about N1.5tn and constituted an inter-Ministerial Committee to harmonise records and deliver a lasting funding solution, declaring his readiness of the government even to borrow when necessary to settled verified obligations.
“The House is further aware that the directive of the National Assembly approved the borrowing in excess of N1tn specifically to finance the settlement of outstanding obligations on completed and verified capital projects, in addition to dedicated provisions in the 2026 Appropriation Act for contractor liabilities, while the Honourable Minister for Finance has announced the clearance of substantial sums announcements, which contractors dispute as partial announcements.”
He expressed concern that despite the presidential directive and legislative approvals, the release of funds to MDAs had remained slow.
“The House is concerned that, notwithstanding the clear directive of the President, the legislative approvals and the ministerial assurances to MDAs remain slow, if I may say nonexistent, stalling critical projects, escalating contract costs, exposing contractors to insolvency, and rising non-performing loans and eroding public trust in the budget of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, approved by this parliament.”
The Lawmaker also criticised a Treasury circular dated 29 June 2026, reportedly issued by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, which requires a Certificate of Verification and Compliance from the Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs before payments for constituency projects can be made.
He said, “The House is disturbed by recent newspaper reportage of a federal treasury circular dated 29 June 2026 issued by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, halting payments for zonal intervention and constituency projects, unless a certificate of verification and compliance is first obtained from the Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs, a directive which however well-intentioned, introduces yet another layer of bureaucratic bottlenecks at the very moment Mr President has demanded speed and risks turning back the hands of the clock by subjecting duly appropriated, procured, and executed projects to delay further.”
He therefore, prayed the House to urge the President, “as a father of the nation, to make up time, since we have invited Ministers, invited Security Chiefs, invited different members of the Economic Council to come here and explain to us why the budget is not being implemented.”
Earlier, Etanabene had urged the House to invoke its constitutional oversight powers by inviting President Tinubu and members of his economic team to explain the rationale behind the reported suspension of constituency project funding.
Citing Sections 4, 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), he argued that the legislature had a responsibility to demand accountability over the implementation of budgets it had approved.
He said, “I wish, Mr Speaker, that the Constitution be tested. I urge this House to agree that we summon the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, together with his financial team, to appear before this House in line with the provisions of the Constitution and to brief Nigerians exactly what is happening, because the stories are not complimentary at all.
“We cannot explain to the constituents what is happening. Today, we collect money. We will not be able to give a proper explanation for it. The budgets are not being implemented. Presently, in Nigeria, we are implementing the 2024, 2025, and 2026 budgets concurrently. This is not in everyone’s best interest.
“So, Mr Speaker, I wish to move the motion that this House invite Mr President to come and explain and make us know the need for this circular that has been released.”
However, the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, ruled that the aspect of the debate seeking to summon the President could not be adopted, describing it as inconsistent with parliamentary practice.
According to the Speaker, “the issue of summoning the President, as included in the debate of Hon Ikwechegh, cannot be adopted by the House,” noting that “such action is unparliamentary.”
Despite Speaker Tajudeen Abbas’s efforts to save the day, the Lawmakers appeared agitated and resolute to revolt against the President.
Some of them who got return tickets to contest the 2027 elections feel they may not have anything on the ground to campaign with, as the Zonal Intervention Projects appear suspended, while those who lost their tickets feel it was due to the non-implementation of constituency projects that largely accounted for their loss.
