The Senate President, David Mark, on Thursday in Abuja appealed to senators, especially chairmen of committees, to ensure that projects included in budgets were representative of the entire country.
Mark made the appeal while reacting to an allegation by Sen. Ita Enang (PDP-Akwa Ibom) that the 2012 budget of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) was skewed to favour only one zone.
The Senate president said although he had not seen the budget, if Enang’s allegations were true, the senators were not being fair to the rest of the country.
“The important thing is that every senator is a senator of Nigeria. If you are a chairman of a committee, you must also know that there are other senators who are chairmen of other committees.
“We must be fair, and we must ensure that there is justice and that there is equity. I don’t know what they have advertised, but if it is skewed in one direction, it is not correct.
“ It must be representative of this country. That is what the Senate is all about,’’the Senate president said.
Enang had earlier observed that the FERMA budget was lopsided as all projects for road construction were centred in only one state.
“The budget of federal road maintenance agency (FERMA) is not representative of this country. It starts almost in one state and ends in one state.
“The roads start mostly in the South East and are concentrated in Enugu State. I’m sorry to say this, and that should not be done in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“I am saying this from what is on record,’’ Enang emphasised.
He had advocated that the budget of FERMA be stopped immediately, and the money for road projects be shared to the zones.
“Let Enugu State alone not take the money that belongs to the entire country. Mr President, I want us to even dissolve FERMA because it is not doing what it is supposed to do.
“One person alone has the opportunity to write the budget, he diverts everything to his village and starves the entire country.
“This is not the purpose of federal character. Even the village of the Senate President is not captured in the FERMA projects, ’’he said.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Works, Sen. Ayogu Eze (PDP-Enugu) had, in his response to the allegations, said that the issue was completely mistaken.
Eze explained that there had been an earlier publication of constituency projects of some individuals which was not a representation of the FERMA budget.
“What was advertised during the holidays was mainly some of the new projects that came as a result of constituency projects of some individuals.
“It is not a representation of the entire budget of FERMA. Before they made this last advertisement, they have awarded about 90 per cent of their contracts in different parts of the country,’’Eze said.
He also alluded to the fact that every zone of the country was represented on the committee of works.
“We all passed the budget here. On the committee of Works, every section of this country is represented. I can assure you on my honour that the budget was not skewed.
The Senate also confirmed the nomination of Mr Nnoli Nnaji (South East) as a member of the governing board of FERMA.
Mark congratulated the new board member and urged the board to live up to the expectations.
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