By Onwukwe Ezeru, Umuahia
Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, has said that the state’s 2017 budget proposal will adopt pyramid system of “bottom to up” approach in its input stage to accommodate inputs from ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) in the state.
After flagging off the 2017 budget defense at the state Planning Commission, Umuahia, Ikpeazu said that the approach would make room for sound budget proposal, hence the need for the MDAs to come and defend their various budgets.
“Our strategy now is to work from bottom to the top so that every ministry will make an input going forward so that whatever you see now originated from the ministries and that is why they are challenged to come and defend it”, he said.
The Abia State chief executive described the budget christened “Budget of Prudence and Self-Reliance” as a proposal and estimate, promising, “we will work towards it. We may not realize it 100% but we will certainly grade ourselves and say whether we made it 80% or 90%”.
He warned those that may work outside the budget that “If you do something outside the budget, it is fraudulent and the sanctions are clear. Everybody understands this. We expect that we are going to work to achieve most of the things we have listed for ourselves”.
On the current size of state internally generated revenue, IGR, Ikpeazu expressed his dissatisfaction thus: “We are not satisfied with IGR but we are working towards making it better”, stating that substantially, the state has realized its 2016 budget.
In his response to the speech of the Planning Commission boss, Ikpeazu said that his administration has remained resilient to meet up with the demands of Abians as the federal allocation to the state is going down on daily basis.
He noted that his administration was desirous to begin systematic rehabilitation of rural markets in 2017 for the benefit of the common women in the society as well as providing solar lights around rural markets.
In her address, the Chairman and Permanent Secretary, Abia State Planning Commission, Ugoeze Adanma Iheuwa, said the 2017 was so christened to reflect the policy directive of Okezie Ikpeazu administration and based on the administration’s five pillars of development, namely, agriculture, oil and gas, trade and commerce, infrastructure and education.
Speaking with newsmen, Ugoeze Iheuwa said that the budget was based on $48 pb crude oil price, noting however that it has come to $23 pb, thus affecting budget implementations.
According to her, the strict adherence to budgets may not be total as budgets after presentation to the state House of Assembly and signing into law by the governor is flexible, hence the need for supplementary budgets after due processes, including going through the budget committee and approval by the te governor.
Ugoeze Iheuwa said 2016 budget expectations fall by between 40$ to 50% with the fall in federal allocation which reduced by about 60%, stating that the state has done well in the area of education as the state has consistently maintained the lead in the sector in the country.
She also maintained that the worst problem of the state is in the area of federal road infrastructure in the state which has been compounded by the rainy season, describing the state as a gateway to the northern part of the country.
