…As Gov Signs 2013 Budget Into Law

The Rivers State Appropriation Bill 2013 has been signed into law by Governor Chibuike Amaechi at the weekend.

The budget, which totalled N490.32billion is N52.32billion higher than that of 2012 which was N438billion.

With the signing of the budget, Governor Amaechi assured that ongoing projects would be completed, disclosing that about N40billion would be allotted to works while N20billion would go to education while health and monorail would have N10billion each.

He thanked the  legislators for prompt passage of the  appropriation bill, and noted that the executive would immediately start implementing the budget.

“I have always told my cabinet that we must go by our budget. Nobody should spend outside the budget, there should not be any extra-budgetary expenditures because I will sign . I like to know that every expenditure is backed by the budget. Nobody should undermine the authority of the state Assembly”, Amaechi admonished.

A break down of the budget shows the economic sector having the largest share of N93.09billion, followed by the social sector with N47.81billion, while environment has N37.60billion.

Other sectors with high allocations include health with N10.23billion, education sector N47.81billion.

Least allocations went to social welfare with N500million, Women Affairs got N600million, Commerce and Industry with N400million while energy and natural resources got the lowest of N160million.

Sectors that witnessed improved allocations are agriculture with N4.03billion, culture and tourism, N1.12billion, transport, N8.5billion, housing, N3billion, information and communication, N1.2billion, water, N25.50billion aimed at building infrastructure to boost water provision.

The budget, which is purely a capital budget, however, witnessed increased recurrent expenditure of about N176.02billion while capital expenditure will gulp N314billion.

Governor Amaechi while presenting the bill last December told the House that, ‘ we have made provisions under the recurrent expenditure, window for new recruitments including the hiring of additional 13,000 teachers to strengthen our education sub-sector”.

The state House of Assembly approved the budget without fresh additions or deductions.

Members of Boko Haram splinter group insisting on a cease fire at a news conference in Maiduguri, last Saturday