AKHA passes 2014 budget …harps on establishment of children, youth parliament

The controversial 2014 budget which was prepared in line with the International Public Sector Accounting Standard (IPSAS) and presented to the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly last year by the State Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio was passed into law last Thursday following the report of the House Committee on Appropriation and Finance through its chairman, Barr Onofiok Luke.

The Appropriation committee who spoke through its head, Barr Onofiok Luke told the House that the delay in the budget was caused by the IPSAS principles which he said is very new to the House hence, the long time taken to go through the budget.

Occasioned by the demand for increment by various ministries, agencies, departments and parastatals during the budget defense by the Committee, the total budget size of N469, 373,652, 100 Billion has increased to a total sum of N495, 539,700, 100billion.

The committee augmented the total budget size by the sum of N29, 166,048,000 billion announcing N29, 130,000,000 billion as capital expenditure and N36,048,000 billion as recurrent expenditure. The increase in the total budget size is now 6.21% of the original total figure of N469, 373,652, 100billion.

The committee explained that it recommended a corresponding increase in statutory allocation by N29,166,048,000billion thereby bringing the total revenue to N398,892,460,100billion against the original projection of N369,726,412,100billion in order to balance the budget.
The committee thereafter recommended that the House should pass the appropriation bill with the recommended amendments, and that the State executive council should take steps to streamline MDAs so as to avoid conflict of roles and duplication of functions.

The committee further commended that every MDA should make a quarterly report to the State House of Assembly through their various committees on the level of budget implementation and the release of funds. They also called on the State executives and the leadership of the House to put all machineries in place to inaugurate the children and youth parliament in the State.
The report was passed into law by the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon Sam Ikon and was pronounced, “law of the land”.