Alhaji Kabiru Turaki, the Minister of Special Duties and Inter Governmental Affairs, on Sunday commended the National Assembly (NASS) for the passage of the 2013 budget amendment bill.
This is contained in a statement signed by Mr Okey Muogbo, the Special Adviser on Media to the Minister in Abuja.
According to the statement, Turaki said the passage of the bill showed that members of NASS were not at war with the executive as both arms were committed to the well-being of Nigerians.
Turaki described the development as a healthy one for Nigeria’s democracy.
He said a situation might arise to give the impression that all was not well between both arms.
However, he said, the people should understand that it was because of the passion both of them had to actualise their mandate and to serve Nigerians better.
“I want to assure Nigerians that these leaders have always managed themselves in such a manner as not to overheat the polity and that has been the guiding principle.
“Yes, we may disagree but our disagreement, at the end of the day, should not be a source of weakness, it should be a source of strength,” the minister said.
The statement said that even in situations where there were disagreements between the Executive and the Legislative arms of government, it was because each looked at things differently.
Turaki said that the disagreement could also be because of the passion they had in ensuring that each one complemented the efforts of the other within the parameters of the constitution.
This, he said, was a healthy development.
The minister commended the leadership of the Senate and the House of Representatives as well as President Jonathan for the maturity they exhibited in bringing the budget issue to an end.
“With the passage of the budget amendment bill, which restored the over N78 billion earlier slashed from 2013 budget, the polity has been saved.
“This is one of the issues that tended to overheat the polity and cripple the financial operations of the Federal Government”, the minister added.
