Budget: RSG Denies Addition Of N30bn

Rivers State Government has debunked reports that it added the sum of N30 billion to the 2012 budget as reported in a local tabloid in the state.

The State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Hon Gogo Levi Charles, in his reaction through his Press Secretary, Enyinda Orji, said the state government only added N11 billion to this years budget to bring the annual expenditure to N438 billion.

According to the commissioner, the addition of N11 billion as made public in the budget breakdown became necessary after the removal of subsidy from petroleum product by the Federal Government earlier this year.

He also denied the report that the state government had any problem with the State House of Assembly over the budget and appealed to journalists to always crosscheck their facts with the State Ministry of Budget before going to the press to avoid misleading the public.