By Dahiru Hassan Kera
In the democratic governance budget presentation is indeed an annual event at end of the year towards appropriating funds for the upcoming fiscal year as stipulated in the 1999 Constitution. Thus, the President of the federation and the various state governors prepare and present the Appropriation Bill for consideration and onward approval before the National Assembly and various state houses of assembly across the nation.
The philosophy for the public presentation is to show fairness and transparency on how public funds are budgeted and expected to be spent by the executives through various ministries, agencies and departments of government. The budget components have to be debated before passage into law and subsequent implementation. It’s therefore, the responsibility of the legislatures to ensure full budget implementation through their various committees and over- sight functions see for themselves that the projects where monies are appropriated are judiciously executed.
In Nigeria, it is perplexing how the budget process is fragrantly abused by the key players. They either budget and project figures that aren’t realizable or squander the funds on projects different from those encapsulated in the proposals. These unholy attitudes result in lack credibility for the entire process by the masses. But then, in any society where many public officials are regard as irresponsive and corrupt, God creates an exceptional few that are responsible, prudent and have sincerity of purpose.
Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, OON (Talban Gombe) is one name that has become synonymous with excellence and explicit performance across the country and beyond the shores for his ability to match words with action. He is one of the few honest Nigerians that greeted the rebirth of democracy with total conviction to pursue the greatest happiness for the largest population of the people. This singular vision has kept him soaring higher while his contemporaries are left in envy. The way and manner he viewed and practices leadership has proven him as a prudent manager of resources amidst his equals, using the meager resources to change the living condition of his people in virtually all facets of human life within his 5-year of stewardship in Gombe State.
To mark the end of the 2016 financial year, Governor Dankwambo on Thursday, December 22, 2016 presented the 2017 Fiscal Appropriation Bill before the Gombe State House of Assembly for passage into law. The N85.6 billion budget, tagged ‘Budget of Sustainability’, has 53.7% of the allocations as recurrent while the capital expenditure represents 46.3%. The economic sector has 58.7%, social sector 33.9%, general administration 4.7% and law and justice is 2.5%.
Considering Dankwambo’s 2016 budget and its overwhelming performance for transforming the economic and infrastructural status of Gombe State, one can deduce that Dankwambo’s 2017 budget is a budget for economic and infrastructural sustainability in Gombe State. It is indeed in tune with the current economic realities in the country. The main focus of the government in the operational template is to ensure successful completion of ongoing projects while implementing new ones that are critical for the socio-economic development of the state.
In his unrelenting effort to achieve the vision of his administration, Dankwambo from the onset declared a state of emergency on the education sector. He emphasises on diversification of the economy through enhanced capacity utilization, increased agricultural productivity and accelerated growth and development of the non-oil sector. This will reduce unemployment rate, improve internal security and enhance revenue base. Being a financial expert, Dankwambo has used education, agriculture, road network and human capital development to revive the state’s economy and ensure its sustainability. Therefore, as an essential tool for achieving economic sustainability, education has received an urgent attention in the previous budgets. Dankwambo and his team believe that when people are sufficiently and adequately enlightened, they are bound to bring about development.
Dankwambo, by making education a 3-priority in one, has taken deliberate actions of turning around the education sub-sector through renovation and construction of primary and secondary schools, provision of learning materials, standardization of the school intake system, recruitment of teaching staff, and retraining of the existing ones. School enrolment has remained high and the learning environment is conducive. It’s unarguable that the pivotal role of primary and secondary schools is to feed the tertiary institutions with qualified candidates for admission. Thus, the state government, under the purposeful stewardship of the Talban Gombe, established Gombe State Polytechnic, Bajoga; College of Legal and Islamic Studies, Nafada; Girls School of Basic and Remedial Studies, Daban Fulani while machinery has been put in motion for establishment of Gombe State University of Science and Technology, Gombe State College of Agriculture and Husbandry, Gombe State College of Accounting and Management Studies, Gombe State Institute of Journalism, and Gombe State Institute of Sports. This is in addition to Gombe State College of Education, Billiri and School of Basic and Remedial Studies in Kumo.
In the works and infrastructure sector, from 2011 to date, over 1000kms of roads with bridges have been constructed across the state. Road networks were opened within the urban and rural areas where agricultural and tourism potentials of the state would be expanded through the accessible roads network.
Equally, agriculture as an alternative to oil as sources of revenue generation has received a boost through provision of fertilizer and other farming implements in conformity with international best practices. Other sectors like rural development, trade and industry, water supply, housing and transport, town and country planning, health, youth empowerment and poverty alleviation, sports development, women development and empowerment and many more are not left out in the blueprint of the Dankwambo administration as cogent feats have been recorded in all the sectors.
Therefore, Dankwambo’s performance in all the sectors of the economy has changed the political trend in Gombe and made people to become interested in the affairs of government. This has endeared the action governor more to his people who witnessed his budget presentations and other events in their masse. It is evident that after the passage and signing into law of the 2017 Appropriation Bill, Gombe State would witness another round of infrastructural cum human capital developments. Suffice to say that by the end of his second tenure, Gombe State would be the giant of the North.
Kera wrote from Abuja
