The Committee's Chairman, Senator Kenneth Eze, expressed his concerns during the 2024 budget defence session held on Tuesday in Abuja, where the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, was present.
Eze stated, "This is not a budget that can be viable if we are telling our story as a country, there is no way we can go far, you have a great initiative on how you are going to transform the country in the area of information. I wonder how you are going to do that with these little resources."
He emphasised the importance of the Information Ministry, describing it as a very sensitive ministry that should be taken seriously and adequately funded. He asserted that if the country is to realise the Renewed Hope Agenda, the Information Ministry should be at the forefront.
"It should be the image maker to sensitise the people, there is a widening gap between the government and there must be enough information to bridge the gap," he added.
The minister assured the senators that a national values and attitudes re-orientation campaign will be launched in 2024 under the auspices of the National Values Charter (NVC). However, he stated that the N1 billion allocated for the Ministry as capital expenditure in 2024 was insufficient.