Infrastructure: Uncertainty over 2017 FCT appropriation bill

Stories by Stanley Onyekwere

Less than three months to the end of 2017, the FCT budget for the year is yet to be passed into law for capital projects to be effectively implemented by the administration.
Though the FCT Minister, Muhammad Musa Bello has been unrelenting on completing ongoing projects mostly initiated by the previous administrations, new critical capital projects cannot take off.
PeoplesDaily however learnt that in spite of the seeming delay in the passage, the FCT Administration was in the House of Representatives on Wednesday for the budget defence, only for it to be postponed to a later date.
Available information revealed that the budget estimate for FCT in 2017 stands at N222.4 Billion.
And the breakdown in the proposal shows that: Statutory Revenue Allocation stands at N60 billion; Value Added Tax (VAT) is N10 billion.
Also, while excess Crude revenue is N5 billion, Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) is putted at N139.10 billion respectively.
Other estimated allocations include: Universal Basic Education Counterpart Fund is N 1.3 billion; FCT, SDG, UNDAF, World Bank and CSDP Counterpart Funds is N500 million; Chinese Loan for Railway project is N5.6 billion.
On the other hand, Accelerated Area Council Titles Reissuance Scheme (AACTRS), and Tax Collection by Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) are given zero allocation in the budget.
Meanwhile, when contacted for reaction to the seemingly unresolvable uncertainty clouding the 2017 budget, S. A. (Media) to the FCT Minister, Abubakar Sani, said there is no cause for serious concern, as the legislative required for the appropriation is still on track.
He explained that when the budget was submitted, the National Assembly proceeded on 60 days recess.
He added that since the resumption of the lawmakers, activities have stepped up towards the passage of the budget.
The Minister’s Media Aide therefore expressed optimism that the budget will be passed in a matter of days.
He however reiterated that the fact that even capital projects have been going on, in spite of the seemingly delay in the passage of the 2017 FCT budget.