PDP Condemns President Tinubu’s 2024 Budget Proposal as ‘Hopeless’
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has fiercely criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s proposed N27.5 trillion budget for the 2024 fiscal year, labeling it as a compilation of heavily inflated figures, duplicated items, and misleading statistics.
President Tinubu presented the ‘Budget of Renewed Hope‘ before a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives on Wednesday, November 29.
However, the PDP, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, vehemently urged the National Assembly to dismiss the appropriation bill, citing concerns that its passage would drive the nation into severe economic distress.
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The PDP’s statement declared the claim that the budget represents a ‘Budget of Renewed Hope’ as contrived and misleading, asserting that the proposed budget lacks substantial strategies to rejuvenate the economy, generate employment, revive dormant sectors like manufacturing and production, address human capital deficiencies, and tackle the declining life expectancy among Nigerian citizens.
Highlighting flaws within the proposed budget, the PDP criticized its substantial provisions for the luxuries of the Presidency and All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders.
It expressed alarm over the budget’s reliance on multilateral and bilateral foreign loans and increased taxes on Nigerians, foreseeing a bleak future for the impoverished citizens.
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The opposition party scrutinized the budget’s framework, flagging the staggering allocations of N9.9 trillion for Recurrent Expenditure, N8.7 trillion for Capital Expenditure, and N8.25 trillion for debt services as unsustainable and unachievable given the existing debt and proposed borrowings, primarily aimed at financing consumption and debt servicing.
Moreover, the PDP criticized President Tinubu’s admission of adopting an exchange rate of N750 per US Dollar for 2024, denouncing it as a sign of the APC administration’s failure to manage and bolster the economy, which could further weaken the nation’s productive sector and the purchasing power of its citizens.
Calling on the National Assembly to reject the proposed budget, the PDP urged the legislative body to disassemble and reconstruct the budget, focusing on critical provisions vital for economic growth and the welfare of Nigerians, as mandated by the Constitution.
The PDP’s scathing critique underscores deep concerns regarding the proposed budget’s viability, casting doubt on its ability to foster economic revival and welfare enhancement for the populace.
