Where’s The Money?’ – Baba-Ahmed Tackles FG, NASS Over Explosive ₦6 Trillion Budget Padding Claim

This demand follows a report by BudgIT Nigeria, a civic tech organization promoting budget transparency, which revealed that the 10th National Assembly inserted 11,122 projects totaling ₦6.93 trillion into the budget.

BudgIT’s analysis highlighted that 238 of these projects, each valued at over ₦5 billion and collectively amounting to ₦2 trillion, were added with minimal or no justification. Additionally, 984 projects worth ₦1.71 trillion and 1,119 projects ranging from ₦500 million to ₦1 billion (totalling ₦641.38 billion) were reportedly inserted without clear rationale.

The report further noted that 3,573 projects valued at ₦653.19 billion were allocated to federal constituencies, while 1,972 projects worth ₦444.04 billion were directed to senatorial districts.

Reacting to the report via his X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday, Baba-Ahmed insisted that both the Presidency and the National Assembly must address the issue and clarify the legitimacy of the reported insertions. He urged the government to take legal action against BudgIT if the report is deemed false.

“If BudgIT’s claims are untrue, the National Assembly and the Presidency should sue them for misinformation. Otherwise, the silence would imply the report is accurate. In any case, the government owes Nigerians a detailed explanation,” he stated.