It is reported that certain members of the House of Representatives are attempting to gain admittance into the Green Chamber’s Appropriations Committee by influencing influential figures in the Presidency and the National Assembly’s leadership.
Information surfaced indicating that the committee’s membership has grown over the past few weeks, allegedly in violation of House rules and a source of dissatisfaction in the lower house.
It was discovered that the Appropriations Committee now had 57 members instead of the 40 that house rules statutorily permitted.
As per Leadership, certain chairmen and deputies of other House Standing Committees have been granted admission as committee members.
Newspaper reported that the lawmakers became members of the committee.
According to the publication, the legislators joined the committee because of the lucrative chances that come with being a member, particularly in terms of financial benefits and the chance to smuggle projects into the budget for personal financial advantage.
Chairmen and deputies of other standing committees are not permitted to join the appropriations committee, nevertheless, due to House Rules.
It was learned that Edo and Akwa-Ibom states each have three members, and that the chairs of two additional standing committees had already been appointed to the panels.
According to the report, several states have more than one member in the committee, despite the fact that Ebonyi has two members, which is against House norms.
The regulations provide that the approval committee must consist of
According to the rules, the approval committee is meant to consist of a chairman, members from each of the 36 states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), who are all appointed during the state caucuses.
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Given that the House of Representatives has ten members, it is understood that the committee was established by the standing orders of both chambers of the National Assembly.
The committee has the authority to hold hearings on the entire budget as well as appropriate funds for the implementation of government programs and projects.
Members of the Appropriations Committee have viewed and used the committee as a lifeline for significant personal enrichment, a source in the green room told Leadership.
The source said: “There are about 57 members in the Appropriation Committee of the House now, and with the emergence of some chairmen and deputies of other committees forcing their way into the committee contravenes the standing rules of the house. More members are still lobbying to come into the appropriation. With the prevailing trend, membership of the committee may go above 100.
“The attraction is obvious. It’s a lifeline of the NASS as members have the opportunity to make extra funds
