CISLAC warns against padding 2025 budget, demands accountability

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has urged the Federal Government and National Assembly to prioritise transparency and accountability in the allocation of projects in the 2025 budget.

The organisation specifically cautioned against budget padding and the inclusion of questionable allocations, such as funds designated for scrapped ministries, like the Ministry of Niger Delta and the Ministry of Sports.

President Bola Tinubu presented a budget of N49.7 trillion to the National Assembly last Wednesday. In a statement signed by its Executive Director, Auwal Rafsanjani, yesterday, CISLAC described such allocations as indicative of inadequate needs assessment and a disregard for accountability, stressing the need for urgent reforms to restore public trust.

Rafsanjani also condemned the recurrent practice of some legislators exploiting the budget process to allocate resources for constituency projects lacking a legal framework for monitoring and accountability.

“These projects are often implemented without adherence to public procurement regulations and fail to address the genuine needs of citizens,” he said.

Drawing from the Auditor-General’s report, CISLAC highlighted irregular payments totalling over N197.72 billion across ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) between 2020 and 2021.

These violations, according to the CISLAC boss, include systemic lapses in financial compliance and procurement processes. Rafsanjani called on the public accounts committees of the National Assembly to act decisively in addressing the irregularities and recovering misappropriated funds.