THE Anambra State House of Assembly has passed the 2018 appropriationĀ bill into law.
The bill is N170.9billion as against N166.9 bn presented to it by theĀ State Governor, Willie Obiano in December.
The Chairman Finance and Appropriation Committee of the House, MrĀ Obinna Emenaka said the increase in the allocation was to accommodate the development of more infrastructure in the state.
He said his committee arrived at the new figure following painstakingĀ sessions during budget defence by ministries, departments and agencies of theĀ government.
He said āOur governor has sustained regular payment of salaries and onĀ time.
This apparent interest by the governor in paying his workers isĀ happily reflected in this yearās budget alongside the other variousĀ projects in the State.
In her remarked, the Speaker of the House, Mrs Rita Maduagwu commended theĀ members and staff of the legislature for what she called theirĀ āwonderful contributions towards the passage of the billā.
She said, āActually, we have fulfilled our promise to the Administration of His Excellency,Ā Governor Willie Obiano and the people of Anambra State, that we wouldĀ give the bill accelerated consideration.
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āI commend various committees with special thanks to the Finance andĀ Appropriation Committee under the leadership of Hon Obinna Emenaka forĀ thorough budget defence exercise.
āThis prompt passage of the 2018 Appropriation bill is in line withĀ our resolve to continue to enact laws aimed at improving the livingĀ standard of our people as well as the growth and development of theĀ state.
āThe content of this yearās budget is rich and development driven,Ā purposely designed for the good governance of the stateĀ Maduagwu said the 2017 budget recorded above 80 percentĀ implementation,ā addingā we expect over 90 percent implementation thisĀ year, the speaker added.
She said the Assembly would take seriously the issue of oversightĀ Functions to ensure effective implementation of the budget.