Nigeria's ailing president has signed a supplementary 2009 budget taken to him in Saudi Arabia covering spending in sub-Saharan Africa's second biggest economy until the end of March, a presidency source said on Tuesday. President Umaru Yar'Adua has been in a clinic in the Saudi Red Sea port of Jeddah for more than a month being treated for a heart condition, raising concern about his ability to govern Africa's most populous nation.
"The president has signed the supplementary budget, which was taken to him. He can exercise his powers from anywhere," the presidency source told Reuters, asking not to be named. The Senate passed the 353.6 billion naira ($2.4 billion) supplementary budget last month, which includes capital spending of around 253 billion naira, of which 114 billion is earmarked for "post-amnesty intervention" in the Niger Delta, the restive heartland of the country's oil industry.
Financial analysts had feared Yar'Adua's absence might delay the implementation of the budget and lead to nervousness in financial markets, which have so far largely shrugged off the concerns over his health. Vice President Goodluck Jonathan has been presiding over cabinet meetings in Yar'Adua's absence but executive powers have not officially been transferred, leading a top lawyer to challenge the legality of government decisions.
A lack of updates on his condition has fuelled speculation about the gravity of his illness in the Nigerian media, with some reports saying he is largely incapable of communicating. But presidency officials have said he is responding to treatment for pericarditis - an inflammation of the membrane around the heart that can restrict normal breathing - and that contact is made with him on issues requiring his approval.
The supplementary budget includes funds for re-integrating thousands of gunmen who surrendered their weapons under an amnesty earlier this year in the Niger Delta, as well as for infrastructure development in the region. The amnesty is the most comprehensive effort yet to end years of unrest which have prevented the Opec member from pumping much above two thirds of its 3 million barrels per day (bpd) production capacity, costing it an estimated $1 billion a month in lost revenues.
But militants in the region said 10 days ago they had attacked a major pipeline - their first such assault since the amnesty programme ended in October - because Yar'Adua's absence was delaying the implementation of its terms. Former militants protesting over the non-payment of amnesty allowances have staged protests around the Niger Delta in recent weeks, raising fears the programme could unravel and increasing pressure to resolve uncertainty surrounding the president. The supplementary 2009 budget comes in addition to expansionary spending plans for next year.
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