President Bola Tinubu has informed the leadership of the National Assembly there will be no need to lose sleep over the allegation that they padded the 2024 budget, stressing that their integrity was very much intact.
The President also declared that the perpetrators of the killing of soldiers in Delta State will face certain justice, warning that his administration will not tolerate attacks on the military and security infrastructure as it was an attack on the country.
President Tinubu stated this when he hosted the leadership of the Senate to a dinner to break the Ramadan fast at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
In a statement issued on Friday morning by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Chief Ajuri Ngelale, the President told members of the upper legislative chamber that his administration will always encourage cooperation for the advancement of the nation.
Ajuri in the statement quoted Tinubu as saying, “I know the arithmetic of the budget and the numbers that I brought to the National Assembly, and I know what numbers came back. I appreciate all of you for the expeditious handling of the budget. Thank you very much.
“Those who are talking about malicious embellishment in the budget; they did not understand the arithmetic and did not refer to the baseline of what I brought. But your integrity is intact.
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“I am grateful for what you have been doing. The natural challenge we are facing will be over. On the current economic difficulty, we are about turning the corner. Our revenue has improved. All we have to do is to control expenditure and manage ourselves better.
“Light is at the end of the tunnel, and Nigerians will soon smile again,” the President affirmed.
On the gruesome murder of officers and soldiers in Okuoma, Delta State, the President said the military will continue to enjoy the support of his administration in neutralizing security threats across the country.
He said, “Our armed forces are working hard, and we will not allow attackers to undermine the integrity and value of our armed forces and its leadership.
“We will continue to encourage and fight for our sovereignty, our individual rights to exist, and we will succeed in banishing poverty from our land,’’ the President stated.
President Tinubu thanked members of the National Assembly for the speedy attention given to the Student Loan Amendment Bill, urging more tolerance, forgiveness, and charity during Ramadan.
In his remarks, the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio thanked the President for hosting the lawmakers, noting that regular interactions would enhance understanding and productive governance.