Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, says the N9.9 trillion recurrent expenditure of the N27.5 trillion 2024 budget is too high, as it constitutes 43 per cent of the budget.

Bamidele said this at the opening of debate on general principles of the budget at plenary in Abuja on Thursday.

The Senate Leader said the total fiscal operations of the federal government would result in N9.8 trillion deficit, representing 3.88 per cent of estimated GDP, noting that this was above the three per cent threshold set by the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007.

Bamidele listed highlights of the budget to include oil price benchmark of 77.96 dollars per barrel and baily oil production estimate of 1.78 million barrels of condensates of 300,000 to 400,000 barrels per day and exchange rate of N750 to dollar.

The lawmaker said that based on the fiscal assumptions and parameters, total federally-collectible revenue was N16.87 trillion in the budget, while total federally distributable revenue was N11.09 trillion.

READ ALSO: Tinubu presents N27.5trn 2024 budget to N’Assembly

He stated that the total revenue available to fund the 2024 budget was N9.73 trillion, which included revenues from 63 government-owned enterprises, while oil revenue was projected at N1.92 trillion, with non-oil taxes at N2.43 trillion, among others.

Bamidele said to finance the deficit would result in new borrowings totaling N7.83 trillion in addition to N294.49 billion expected from privatisation.

He said the deficit would also be financed from N1.06 trillion drawn from bilateral, multilateral loans secured for specific development projects programmes.

The Senate Leader, however, said there was a growing concern over continued borrowing, but the administration resorted to it to finance fiscal gaps.

Bamidele added: “But let me state here that the debt level of the federal government is still within sustainable limits.

“Very importantly, these loans are used to finance critical development projects and programmes aimed at improving our economic environment and ensuring effective delivery of public services to our people.”

Contributing, Senator Osita Ngwu (PDP-Enugu) said President Bola Tinubu fulfilled his promises by capturing food security and poverty alleviation in the budget.

Ngwu said there was the need to ensure a review of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) to ensure the continuous ramp-up of oil production to fund the deficit in the budget.

Senators, who contributed to the debate, commended Tinubu for the budget, saying it was a budget of renewed hope.

The Star