2018 budget: Ekweremadu opens up on Enugu airport budget cut

Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu has indicted
National Assembly Committees for slashing of budgetary allocation for
the completion of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu in the
2018 budget from N2billion to N500million.


Ekweremadu rejected insinuation that he or the South East lawmakers
backed slashing of the budget proposal for the project.

Ekweremadu, in a statement on Thursday, assured that the South East
federal lawmakers and the National Assembly remained committed to the
early completion of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu.


He said his investigation showed that the cuts took place at the
committees level and that hopefully the affected committees would have
explanations to make when the National Assembly resumes.

The lawmaker explained that it would be unfair to expect him to
monitor the activities of the over 60 committees of the Senate and 100
committees in the House of Representatives unless his attention was
called to any challenges.

Ekweremadu said: "The Committees of the National Assembly are usually
given a free hand to do their jobs, but they are structured in a way
that every geopolitical zone is represented. That way, they can call
the attention of the principal officer from their zone when any
challenges arise.


"But in this case, the South East holds the positions of Vice Chairman
of the House and Senate Committees on Appropriation and also chairs
the House Committee on Aviation. Unfortunately, unlike in the case of
Committee on Works where my attention was called to the challenges in
appropriations, award, and funding of major road projects and I made
my modest interventions to resolve the issues, nobody informed me of
any challenges concerning budgetary provisions for the Akanu Ibiam
Airport."

Ekweremadu added that the quest for a befitting international airport
for the South East had been a daunting challenge, pointing out that
the government did not release the N2 billion approved by the National
Assembly in the 2017 budget for the terminal building at the Enugu
Airport.

The South East Senate Caucus had earlier expressed shock over reported
cut in the 2018 budget allocation for the Enugu Airport Terminal.