Budget padding: Bauchi governor praises suspended senator Ningi

The Governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, has publicly declared his support for Senator Abdul Ningi, who is currently suspended from the senate for 3 months for alleging that the 2024 budget was padded with the dime of 3.7 trillion Naira.

Recall that Ningi, representing Bauchi Central on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had alleged that about N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget was not tied to any project.

The allegation, however, landed him three months suspension after the Senate deliberated on the matter during plenary on Tuesday.

Reacting to Ningi’s suspension, the governor said the lawmaker’s integrity is praiseworthy.

Mohammed, who was elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as Ningi said, “I stand firm in our support for Senator Abdul Ahmed Ningi of Bauchi Central.”

According to a post on X, Mohammed made this known at the Bauchi State Executive Council meeting.

“I emphasised the importance of preserving dissent within our political landscape without resorting to punitive actions.

“I am committed to examining Senator Ningi’s situation further. It is common knowledge that Senator Ningi is one of the best performing senators whose heritage and uprightness, ancestry and integrity are worthy of praise,” the post read.