As both chambers of the National Assembly begin consideration of the N49.7 trillion 2025 budget at committee levels on Tuesday, January 7, the Senate announced on Monday it would suspend plenary for two weeks upon resumption on January 14.

The Senate has also fixed Thursday, January 9, for open day on the budget consideration which will entail inputs from various stakeholders in the polity aside from heads of the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (APC Ogun West), who announced these during a meeting with chairmen of other standing committees in the Senate, said the January 31 date for laying of reports on the 2025 Appropriation Bill separately before the Senate and the House of Representatives was tentative.

At the meeting attended by many chairmen of Senate’s Standing Committees and principal officers -including the Deputy Leader, Senator Lola Ashiru (APC Kwara South), Senate Whip, Senator Tahir Monguno (APC Borno North), etc – said the time frame for consideration and passage of the 2025 budget by the National Assembly was short, yet the best had to be made out of it.

“Before this meeting with chairmen of the various standing committees in the Senate, the Appropriation Committee met for several hours on best way to handle the consideration of the 2025 budget which was presented to the National Assembly on Wednesday, December 18, 2024 by President Bola Tinubu and passed for second reading by both the Senate and the House of Representatives on Thursday, December 19, 2024,” Senator Adeola said.

“For expeditious and thorough consideration, hard copies of the budget proposals were obtained and already given to chairmen of the various committees as required reference documents during budget defence sessions with heads of MDAs under their purview.

“The tentative time table that has been drawn for consideration of the budget at committee level is that budget defence sessions begin from tomorrow (Tuesday), while reports from various committees are expected to be submitted from 15th to 18th of this month.

“Afterwards, collation and tidying up of the various reports will be done by the Appropriation Committee with the hope of laying the final report on the budget to the Senate on 31st of this month.

“However, the 31st of January fixed for laying of the budget is tentative as it is just given to guide our working,” he said.

The Senator Adeola-led committee thereafter went into a closed-door session with chairmen of the various standing committees in the Senate.