The House of Representatives was on Wednesday thrown into a rowdy session after lawmakers clashed over a proposal to invite President Bola Tinubu to explain the alleged non-release of funds for constituency projects and the poor implementation of the 2026 budget.
Our correspondent in the state house, Abuja reported that the tension erupted during the consideration of a motion sponsored by the member representing Aba North/Aba South Federal Constituency, Abia State, Alex Ikwechegh, on the poor funding of appropriated budgets and persistent delays in the release of capital funds to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The debate followed a constitutional Point of Order raised by the member representing Okpe/Sapele/Uvwie Federal Constituency, Delta State, Benedict Etanabene, who drew the attention of the House to a circular from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation suspending funding for zonal intervention and constituency projects pending fresh verification requirements.
Etanabene 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 directive.
Citing Sections 4, 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), he argued that the National Assembly had a responsibility to demand accountability for budgets it had approved.
“We cannot explain to our constituents what is happening. The budgets are not being implemented. Today, Nigeria is implementing the 2024, 2025 and 2026 budgets concurrently. This is not in the best interest of the country,” he said.
He therefore urged the House to invite the President to explain the circumstances surrounding the circular halting funding for constituency projects.
The proposal immediately divided lawmakers, with members across party lines shouting in support and opposition, forcing Speaker Tajudeen Abbas to repeatedly call for order.
While presenting 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 said the integrity of the appropriation process depended not only on passing the budget but also on the timely release, cash-backing and utilisation of approved funds.
He recalled that during the 2026 budget defence sessions, several ministers and heads of MDAs disclosed that many agencies received little or no capital releases under the 2025 budget, while contractors had continued to protest unpaid certificates for completed projects.
According to him, the situation had left many indigenous contractors unable to repay bank loans obtained to execute government projects.
Ikwechegh also recalled that President Tinubu, at the Federal Executive Council meeting of December 10, 2025, directed the immediate settlement of verified contractor liabilities estimated at about N1.5 trillion and constituted an inter-ministerial committee to reconcile records and facilitate payments.
He noted that despite the presidential directive, legislative approvals and provisions in the 2026 Appropriation Act, releases to MDAs had remained slow, leading to abandoned projects, rising contract costs, contractor insolvency, growing non-performing loans and declining public confidence in the budget process.
The lawmaker further criticised a Treasury circular dated June 29, 2026, issued by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, requiring contractors handling constituency projects to obtain a Certificate of Verification and Compliance from the Federal Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs before payments could be processed.
He argued that the directive, though well-intentioned, had introduced another layer of bureaucracy capable of frustrating the implementation of already approved and executed projects.
Ikwechegh urged the House to commend the President for directing the settlement of verified contractor liabilities while calling on fiscal authorities to implement the directive without delay.
He also appealed to President Tinubu to honour an invitation to the House, alongside members of his economic team, to explain the continued poor implementation of the budget.
However, Speaker Abbas ruled that the proposal seeking to summon the President could not be adopted, describing such a move as inconsistent with parliamentary practice.
“The issue of summoning the President as included in the debate of Hon. Ikwechegh cannot be adopted by the House. Such action is unparliamentary,” the Speaker ruled.
The House subsequently adopted the substantive resolutions of the motion, urging the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Budget Office of the Federation, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Central Bank of Nigeria to prioritise the timely release and cash-backing of appropriated funds.
It also called on the relevant authorities to publish a clear release schedule for the 2026 fiscal year and conclude the verification and payment of outstanding contractor liabilities within a publicly communicated timeframe.
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