Senate to Pause Plenary for Two Weeks from January 14 Over 2025 Budget

Senate to Pause Plenary for Two Weeks from January 14 Over 2025 Budget

By Fly Cable News

The Senate has announced it will suspend plenary for two weeks starting January 14 to facilitate the consideration of the N49.7 trillion 2025 budget. This follows the commencement of budget discussions at the committee level on January 7.

In addition, the Senate has scheduled an open day on Thursday this week to allow input from various stakeholders, including heads of ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).

Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, shared these developments during a meeting with Senate standing committee chairs. He also mentioned that the tentative date for presenting the 2025 Appropriation Bill reports to both the Senate and House of Representatives is January 31, 2025.

The meeting, which included key figures such as Deputy Leader Senator Lola Ashiru and Senate Whip Senator Tahir Monguno, underscored the tight timeframe for considering and passing the budget. However, efforts will be made to ensure an efficient and thorough process.

Adeola explained that to expedite consideration, hard copies of the budget proposals had already been distributed to committee chairs to assist with budget defense sessions. Budget defense will begin on January 8, and committee reports are expected between January 15 and 18. These reports will be compiled and finalized by the Appropriation Committee, with the goal of submitting the final budget report to the Senate on January 31.

Although the January 31 date is provisional, it serves as a guideline for the process.