Cross River assembly approves N437.876 bn supplementary budget

By Jude Opara

The Cross River House of Assembly has passed a supplementary budget of N437.876 billion for the governance of the state.
The budget breakdown showed that N151.684 billion was appropriated for personnel costs, N283.333 billion was for capital expenditure and N2.857 billion was approved for statutory expenditure.
Governor Bassey Otu presented the Supplementary Appropriation Bill to the assembly on July 18.
Speaking during a debate on the bill, Cyril Omini, the chairman, Finance and Appropriation Committee, said the committee undertook a detailed scrutiny of the bill before reporting to the house.
He said the budget would enable the governor to effectively run the business of governance and undertake more development projects in the state.
Mr Omini, who represents Yakurr 1 Constituency, said the bill was referred to the committee after passing the first and second readings.
“As a committee, we adhered to Orders 64 and 66 of the house rules in carrying out our assignment,” he said.
Other lawmakers who spoke during the debate commended the committee for a thorough exercise and described the supplementary budget as a step in the right direction.
In his remarks, the speaker, Elvert Ayambem, said the governor had remained prudent in using public funds, saying, “Every sector has received the attention of the government.”