Bello El-Rufai asks ministries to stop buying vehicles, utensils and others every year, says they don’t expire

Bello El-Rufai, the House of Representatives member representing Kaduna North Federal Constituency, has condemned the excessive spending outlined in the 2025 national budget.

Speaking during a session on Thursday at the National Assembly, El-Rufai criticised Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) for their continuous purchases of new vehicles and computers, stated that such expenditures are unnecessary as vehicles do not expire.

He explained that some items ministries, departments and agencies included in the 2024 budgets in their recurrent expenditure should not be allowed in the 2025 budget.

Sir, the recurrent issue is in every budget, even a young person like myself, we budget for vehicles every year, we budget for utensils every year. So what I would like us to do, sir, to open more revenues or block loopholes is to look at all these ministries that are bringing their budgets.

“If they bought vehicles last year, please, they should just relax now. Vehicles do not expire. These are the little things, Mr. Speaker, that if, unless we start looking at them, the loopholes we talk about will not come out. I want to thank the leadership for sessions like this and other experienced members. It’s a learning opportunity, but on this, the Orasanye report, sir, should be implemented. It is key. That is one,” he said.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker further demanded financial discipline from leaders just as Nigerians are encouraged to endure the current hardship in the country.

“The second and most important thing to me, since I was a, well, I’m still a young man, since I was a boy, budgets every year come with new computers, new furniture. These things don’t expire, sir. We should cut them out totally. We can’t be asking Nigerians, we can’t have a tax reform bill that could shape the fiscal shape of this country. Well, as leaders, we are not cutting anything.

“So I urge the chairman, I’m honored, sir, that I chair a committee that has CBN, but my budget is not on here. But committee chairmen that are more experienced than myself should look into this. Nigerians tired of every agency buying fork and knife every year,” he added.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented the 2025 Appropriation Bill to the 10th National Assembly on Wednesday, December 18.

The proposed budget, titled “Budget of Restoration: Securing Peace, Rebuilding Prosperity,” outlines plans to revamp the nation’s economy.

Tinubu detailed the ₦49.7 trillion budget, targeting ₦34.82 trillion in revenue and allocating ₦15.81 trillion for debt servicing. The budget also projects inflation reduction from 34.6% to 15% in 2025, an improved exchange rate of ₦1,500 per dollar, and increased crude oil production at 2.06 million barrels per day.

He described the plan as ambitious yet essential to secure Nigeria’s future.