The President also declined assents to seven other bills forwarded to him by the National Assembly in February.
He said several reasons, including infractions
and duplication of responsibilities of existing agencies and financial
constraints, were cited in separate letters for the non-assent.
Buhari in the Ajaokuta Completion Fund Bill
letter, dated March 19, 2018, said appropriating 1 billion dollar from
the Excess Crude Account (ECA) as requested for in the bill is not the
best strategic option for Nigeria at this time of budgetary constraints.
The nation cannot afford to commit such an
amount in the midst of competing priorities with long term social and
economic impact that the funds can be alternatively deployed.
Bills seeking to make appropriation of
revenues to fund public expenditure should be consolidated in the annual
Appropriation Act.
Such that these proposals pass through the
traditional scrutiny that budget proposals are subjected to by the
Ministries of Finance, Budget and National Planning and the National
Assembly.
Furthermore, as the Excess Crude Account Funds
belong to the Federation, it would be proper to consult with the
National Economic Council where the states are represented, he said.
He added:Relevant stakeholders such as the
Ministries of Mines and Steel Development, Industry, Trade and
Investment were not fully consulted.
The inputs of key stakeholders are necessary
to create the optimal legal and regulatory framework as well as
institutional mechanism to adequately regulate the steel sector.
In another letter dated March 27 and denying
assent to the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency Bill,
2018, the President cited Section 32 of the Small and Medium Enterprises
Development Agency Bill 2018 as one of the reasons for refusing assent.
Section 32 of the bill, introduces a two and
half per cent levy on the profit before tax of the target companies
which will increase the tax burdens of the companies while offering no
direct benefit to them.
A one per cent levy on imports, which will also add to the cost of doing business in the country.
A five per cent levy on luxury goods, which
duplicates efforts by the Federal Ministry of Finance to raise excise on
such goods in a more sustainable manner to the benefit of the Federal
Government treasury, he said.
The letter added that if signed into law, the
agency would have similar objectives to the Bank of Industry(BOI)
particularly with regard to the funding of Small and Medium Enterprises.
Other bills Buhari declined assents to are the
Nigerian Aeronautical Search and Rescue Bill 2018, Chartered Institute
of Training and Development of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill 2018 and
Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria Bill 2018.
Others are the National Housing Fund Bill
2018, National Institute of Credit Administration Bill 2018 and National
Bio- Technology Development Agency Bill 2018
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