A joint session of the Committee of Interior from both the Senate and House of Representatives has said the Ministry of Interior surpassed its budgetary target in the 2023 fiscal year.
According to the committees, the Ministry did not only exceed but doubled its revenue goal of N600 million from the issuance of expatriate quotas, generating a remarkable sum of N1.195 billion from January to October of the same year.
Senator Adams Oshiomhole, Chairman of the joint committee and representing Edo North, made this revelation during the budget defense exercise at the National Assembly.
The Minister of Interior, Rt. Hon. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, led the heads of agencies under the ministry in presenting the budget.
In his presentation, the Minister highlighted the ministry’s success in surpassing revenue projections for expatriate quotas and marriage.
For expatriate quotas, where N600 million was the targeted revenue in 2023, the Ministry generated N1.195 billion by October 31, 2023. Similarly, the projected revenue from marriage, set at N380 million, was exceeded by over N500 million, with N892.774 million realized by the same date.
During the session, the merits and demerits of the issuance of expatriate quotas by the Interior Ministry were discussed. Lawmakers offered advice, urging the Ministry to carefully regulate the issuance of quotas to prevent foreign prisoners from working in Nigeria, particularly in roles such as construction workers.
Senator Oshiomhole raised concerns, stating, “Honourable Minister, this is a serious issue; prisoners are not expected to work in their countries if the product or whatever they engage in is meant to be exported.”
In response, the Minister assured the committee members that the Ministry had devised a project aimed at job protection for Nigerians. The project, known as the Expatriate Employee Network (EEN), is designed to safeguard jobs meant for Nigerians, prevent expatriates from taking jobs meant for locals, and ensure expatriate workers comply with tax payments in Nigeria.
