Budget 2013: Senate dumps FG’s oil benchmark, adopts $78pb

*Warns FG on excessive borrowing

By Henry Umoru

ABUJA – STRONG indications emerged, Tuesday that the Presidency and the lawmakers may be poised for a war as the Senate has rejected the Federal Government’s pegging of  $75 per barrel as benchmark for the 2013 Budget and raised it to a higher rate of $78 per barrel.

The Senate also approved a crude oil production per day of 2.53mbd, 2.61 mbd and 2.65mbd for 2013, 2014, and 2015 respectively at an average exchange rate of N160 to the dollar.

Rejects structures of SURE-P

Also, the Senate rejected President Goodluck Jonathan’s structures of Subsidy Reinvestment Programme of the Federal Government at state, senatorial and local government levels, just as the law makers put their reasons on the fact that  the measure was derailing from the intentions of the intervention programme.