The Nigerian Senate will on Thursday consider the revised 2020 budget.

The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, gave the hint on Wednesday during plenary after the Committee on Appropriation laid the report on the 2020 revised budget.

He said, “Tomorrow, we can receive and consider the report to ensure that we don’t delay anything as important as that. So, this is the essence of altering the order paper.” 

Recall that the Senate on Tuesday deferred presentation of the report over a delay by Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, to provide details for the sum of N186bn, an amount, which is part of the N500bn COVID-19 intervention fund.

Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Barau Jibrin, on Tuesday had explained to his colleagues that the Finance Ministry was yet to comply with the request of the committee by attaching necessary details for the amount to be captured as part of the 2020 budget amendment bill.

However, the Senate President on Wednesday disclosed that the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning had complied with the request of the Appropriations Committee by providing the relevant details for the outstanding N186bn.

The development, according to him, makes it expedient for the upper chamber to consider the revised 2020 budget on Thursday during plenary.