Reps Frowns At Bunkure’s Failure To Defend 2025 Budget

The House of Representatives Committee on Area Councils and Ancillary Matters has questioned the FCT Minister of State, Mariya Bunkure, over her failure to defend the 2025 budget of area councils.

During the FCT Area Councils budget session, Chairman of the committee, Fred Agbedi, said that Dr Bunkure’s absence from the committee’s session was unacceptable, as she is responsible for overseeing the agencies and departments under her jurisdiction.

Agbedi clarified that the segment of the 2025 budget supervised by the FCT Minister of state was not covered in the presentation as Minister of the FCT Nyesome Wike had earlier appeared before a different committee.

Agbedi warned that if the committee’s process is not properly followed, the House may be misled into approving a budget that has not undergone the necessary legislative scrutiny.

He emphasized that the Minister must appear before the committee to defend the budget and provide details on how the funds will be utilized.

In his intervention, Chairman of the house Committee on Actuarial Matters, Ahmed Jaha, reiterated that from their perspective, the FCT is yet to fully defend its 2025 budget.

He always warned that any delay in her appearance could lead to serious consequences for the budget approval process.

Dr Bunkure apologized for her absence, citing short notice, and requested more time to prepare for the budget defense.

When asked to disclose the total sum proposed under her supervision, Dr Bunkure was unable to provide an exact figure and requested additional time to compile the relevant data.

The committee has directed Bunkure to reappear on June 2, 2025, to defend the budget.

Oduyemi Odumade