Kogi stakeholders lament poor budget preparations

STAKEHOLDERS in Kogi State on Monday said the presentation of budgets by the state government has become ordinary yearly rituals that have no effect on the living of the people.

They therefore advocated town hall meetings with the masses before budgets ate prepared to ensure adequate inputs from the people that the documents were meant for.

The people spoke at a one-day budget summit organised by the Centre for Human Rights and Conflicts Resolution (CHRCR) in partnership with Shehu Musa Yar’ Adua Foundation for stakeholders drawn from the state house of assembly, media, civil society organisations and the civil service.

Speaking at the opening of the programme also supported by the Mac Arthur Foundation, the executive director, CHRCR, Comrade Idris Abdul, advocated more participatory and inclusiveness in budget preparations.

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He explained that the centre would partner the Kogi State House of Assembly to organise a public hearing on 2019 Budget to make it more inclusive and people oriented.

He regretted that over the years the people of the country had always heard of huge figures being allocated to ministries, parastatals and other agencies of government, stressing that at the end of the year they were always at a loss as to the people where the money was invested.

“Budgets were described by the executive in laudatory terms usually result in decreased standards of living for the average person. Accusations of selective implementation of budgets, late release of capital votes and disregard for appropriation Act have been the norm.

Our goal is to institutionalise anti-corruption, transparency and accountability in Nigeria by ensuring necessary political commitment to deepen and spread anti-corruption, transparency and accountability are particularly in an election,” he stated.

The chairman of the committee on budget, Kogi state house of assembly, Haruna Idoko, said the house would be involving the CSO in budget public hearing.

According to him, such a move would enable the house had inputs from the group that constitutes an important segment of the society.

The chief whip of the assembly, Victor Omofaye, lamented that budgets preparation had become an annual “cut and paste” efforts of successive governments.