Barring any change of plans for the presentation of the 2020 budget proposal to the National Assembly, next week, President Muhammadu Buhari will, on Saturday, preside over an emergency Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the presidential villa, in Abuja.
It was gathered, on Wednesday night, that the Extraordinary FEC would be presided by the President when he returns from his trip to South Africa weekend.
Specifically, Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in a statement, on Tuesday, explained that President Buhari would return to Abuja on Friday.
The President departed Abuja, last Wednesday, on a three-day State Visit to the Republic of South Africa, following an invitation by President Cyril Ramaphosa, to discuss the welfare of Nigerians, and find common grounds for building harmonious relations with their hosts.
Council meeting holds Wednesday every week at 11:00a.m. at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa.
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The last time an extra-ordinary FEC held was in January this year, where the President launched the new enhanced security international e-passport with 10-year validity.
In December last year, a special FEC session was convened on a Friday for the consideration and approval of this year’s budget proposal.
The budget presentation to the Parliament was meant to have taken place in the third week of September but for President Buhari’s participation in the 74th United Nations General Assembly.
The Federal Government plans to return to the January–December budget calendar.
As a fallout of signing of the 2017 budget into law by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, while acting as the president, the Executive and the Legislature had agreed to return the Federal Government to a January–December budget calendar, starting from the 2018 budget.
Nigeria currently runs a May-June budget cycle, a development caused by executive-legislature delays since the 8th National Assembly.
The delays have caused what many see as “distortions” in implementation and the inability to meet budget targets.