Nigerian govt directionless, says PDP senator

Matthew Urhoghide, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senator from Edo state, says the Nigerian government is directionless when it comes to planning.

Urhoghide said this on Thursday while contributing to a debate on a motion sponsored by Stellah Oduah, senator representing Anambra north.

Oduah’s motion was on the need to “establish a visionary budget-driven national planning framework for Nigeria.”

While speaking, the Edo senator said the country does not prioritise when it is proposing budgets.

“If you look at the wastage in our budget, every year they are for inconsequential and invisible line items,” Urhoghide said.

“Put all the amounts together, you will find out that it is as though we don’t even know what to do with the money, when so many things are crying for attention.

“Nigeria to tell you that we are directionless when it comes to planning, is secretive to so many international treaties and conventions in the area of health.

“When we say universal health coverage, 15 percent annual budget should go to health, we are not honouring it. Even the act of the national assembly over our own health act, we are not honouring it.

“Since I came to this senate in 2015, I have never seen that happen. You can see that the whole thing is just directionless. It is not how much you have that can decide the development you can elicit. You sew your cloth according to your cloth.

“We have been talking about the issue of power in this country. You cannot find anybody that proves power that is uninterrupted.”

While leading the debate earlier, Oduah said in the last 20 years, the country has developed plans that have not worked.

“It is evident that these plans have fallen short of achieving the vision of becoming one of the top 20 largest economies in the world,” she said.

The motion was adopted after it was put to a voice vote by Ovie Omo-Agege, deputy senate president.