A civil society organisation, Policy Alert, has raised serious concerns over the recently released third-quarter budget performance report of the Akwa Ibom State Government. In a statement by Nneka Luke Ndumere, the Media Contact of Policy Alert and signed by Faith Paulinus, the Programme Officer for Fiscal Reforms and Anti-Corruption, the organisation highlighted alarming revelations about the state government’s negligence of crucial sectors in the economy and its questionable acquisition of illegal loans.
One major issue flagged by the report is the complete lack of capital releases for both the health sector and the water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) sector during the period under review. This omission raises significant concerns about the government’s commitment to the well-being of its citizens.
Furthermore, the report exposes the disproportionate allocation of funds to the Office of the Governor, Ministry of Finance, and the Office of the Accountant General, which lack direct impact on the citizens. Surprisingly, these offices consumed a whopping N6.32 billion in capital expenditure.
Another worrisome finding is the massive expenditure of N47.71 billion on recurrent items in the last quarter, exceeding the N36.64 billion spent on capital projects by more than 30 percent. This contradicts the governor’s recent promises to reduce the cost of governance and recurrent expenditure.
Policy Alert describes these alarming developments as red flags in the state’s public finance management approach that require urgent attention from the government. The organisation urges the state government to disclose specific projects that utilised the N751 million disbursed for capital projects in the educational sector.
“It is even more disturbing that the authorisation to obtain these loans was never discussed on the floor of the House of Assembly, in breach of the Fiscal Law of the state,” the statement reiterates.
With the release of this report, citizens and stakeholders are eager to see how the Akwa Ibom State Government will address these concerns and take proactive measures to rectify the highlighted issues. The transparency, efficiency, and responsible usage of public funds are critical for building public trust and fostering sustainable development in the state.
