No-Show, No Job: Senate’s Stern Message To Absent Appointees

Akpabio declared that during his leadership in the Red Chamber, they were prepared to take a firm stance against heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) who chose to disregard summons from Senate Committees…CONTINUE READING....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Akpabio delivered this warning on Thursday during his address at the public hearing on the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) in the Senate.

He emphasized that the interactive session with MDAs’ leaders and revenue-generating officers’ Chief Executive Officers was of great strategic importance.

He stated that any dedicated appointee who wished for the success of President Bola Tinubu’s administration should be in attendance.

The Senate President further conveyed that his leadership would convey its dissatisfaction to the President regarding any head of a federal agency who declined to appear before the Senate Joint Committees.

He said, “Any serious appointee or any head of any agency that is interested in the success of President Bola Tinubu’s administration ought to be here.

The chairman should provide me with the list of all the heads of agencies that you invited who failed to attend this session.

This marks the beginning of their failure in their respective offices. Therefore, I am pleased to see the chairman of FIRS; he is present. I have also observed the DG NIMASA and others.

Any head of an agency that sends a representative here is not a committed individual, and therefore, the President must reevaluate such an individual’s appointment. It is not a threat, but a fact.”

He added, “I postponed my own appointments to be present in Owerri today for the final rally of my party and other commitments I have, to ensure that I appear so we can strategize on how to succeed.”

Once approved, the MTEF/FSP will serve as the foundation for the 2024 Budget. In the MTEF/FSP submitted to the National Assembly, the federal government set the price of crude oil at $73.96, the exchange rate at N700/$, oil production at 1.78 million barrels per day, debt service of N8.25 trillion, inflation at 21 percent, and GDP growth at 3.76 percent.