The senate has set a September deadline for the executive to submit details of the 2013 budget.
This it said was in a bid to forestall perennial late annual budget passage by the national assembly, chairman of the Senate
Committee on Appropriation, Senator Ahmed Maccido said on Wednesday.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, Maccido said the national assembly had concluded plans to establish its own budget office and go on tour of the six geopolitical zones in October.
The tour, he said, would allow Nigerians and stakeholders in the budgeting process to make input into the 2013 budget.
“We are going to push the executive so much that the 2013 budget must get to us, the national assembly latest by September, so that we work right through October, November and by December, the country gets a new budget.
“Three months, I believe, is enough for us to work on the budget and return it to the executive for assent. That is our plan for the 2013 budget and we hope things would go according to plans.
“For 2013, Nigerians should be rest assured that at the committee level, we have made arrangements, going from point A to point B, everyday, we would monitor monies that have been appropriated and make sure that they are being spent judiciously.
“There has been a lull in the sense that we came in and there was no provision for the programme in the 2011 budget. The inclusive budgeting process whereby the national assembly interacted with the public stopped with the Sixth National Assembly but we intend to re-activate that soon.
“We have to start a new one altogether. In fact, we just got approval for that particular programme in the 2012 budget.
“By October, we will commence the process. We are going out by the first week of October, to bring together all stakeholders in Nigeria, where we will sit down, discuss and deliberate on their input.