Budget scrutiny and implementation remain among the most critical responsibilities of this Assembly. As many of you will recall, we are now six months into 2025, yet Parliament has not had the opportunity to scrutinize the full execution of the 2024 Budget. There’s a reason for this.
The Minister of Finance failed to present a Budget Expenditure Report during the First Ordinary Session of 2025. As a result, Parliament is still owed a comprehensive report on how the entire 2024 Budget was implemented—not just a breakdown of expenditures for the first quarter of 2025.
Without this full disclosure, how can we, as representatives of the people, determine whether government spending in 2024 aligned with what was lawfully approved by this Assembly?
Effective oversight demands full transparency. Parliament must be given the opportunity to examine government expenditures in their entirety. As it stands, no such examination has occurred for the 2024 fiscal year.
Once the report is finally submitted, if discrepancies are found between actual spending and the approved allocations, we must ask questions, demand clear answers, and—if necessary—put forward recommendations. That is how we uphold our oversight mandate.
Yes, we are now halfway through 2025. But that does not absolve us of our duty to scrutinize the 2024 Budget in full.
In fact, Standing Order 94 is clear: the Minister of Finance is required to provide a budget update to the National Assembly at least once during every session. That obligation has not been met. It is now overdue, and it remains a matter of accountability.
Hon. Modou Lamin B Bah
National Assembly Member
Banjul North Constituency
