Aminu Tambuwal: Sokoto State Governor

Alhaji Shehu Rara, the Sokoto State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, on Wednesday said that the state government slashed the 2019 budget proposals to ensure its proper implementation.

Rara made the remark when officials of his ministry and those of Finance, Board of Internal Revenue met with the State Assembly’s Committee on Finance and Appropriation to defend the 2019 Budget proposals.

“The state 2019 budget estimate of over N169.6 billion for the first time reflects a shortfall of about N50 billion compared to the over N220.5 billion of the preceding year.

“This is in order to ensure that the 2019 budget is properly implemented to cover all sectors of human needs.

“The state government is highly committed to ensuring that all its proposals are fully accomplished to sustain the achievements recorded in 2018.

“Moreover, with the current estimate the government has shown its commitment towards ensuring transparency in financial and economic maintenance,” he said.

The commissioner added that the government is fully committed to ensure 100 per cent budget implementation in 2019.

However, the committee’s Chairman, Alhaji Malami Ahmed (PDP – Sokoto South II), said the meeting was aimed at proffering ways to make the state’s budget more workable.

Ahmed commended the state Board of Internal Revenue for sustaining more effort in improving the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in 2018.

“In 2018 we learnt that the Board had recorded great improvement in IGR from N9 billion in 2017 to N13.1 billion.

“This is a great and encouraging improvement for the state, as such we commend the board’s commitment and urge them to sustain such for better service in the state,” Ahmed said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Gov. Aminu Tambuwal had on Dec. 24, 2018 presented the state’s 2019 budget estimate of N169.6 billion to the State House of Assembly for deliberation.

He said that the budget has N99.1 billion for capital expenditure, representing 58.47 per cent while N70.4 billion was for recurrent, representing 41.53 per cent of the total estimate.