The Borno state governor, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, on Friday signed the 2020 appropriation bill into law and warned commissioners that he “will not entertain any submission to fund any project or programme that is not provided for in the budget.”
He gave the warning at the Government House in Maiduguri.
Zulum had presented his first budget of N134.5 on December 2, 2019, to the House of Assembly and the lawmakers passed the budget on December 23 with an increase to N146.8 billion for which the deputy speaker, Abdullahi Musa Askira, said was to make up for gaps they identified during deliberations.
The governor thanked the assembly members for accelerated passage of the budget and said he intends to be strict in adhering to provisions.
He said, “Under no circumstance should any member of the executive council (mostly commissioners) make any financial submission that is not provided for in the 2020 budget. All submissions to the executive council or to me must follow the provisions of the budget. Submissions will first of all be subjected to budgetary evaluation to ensure there is provision for them before the submissions are even considered. If we follow the provisions of the budget, we will make things easier for ourselves and we will achieve so much in orderly manner. We will be strict in implementing our budget.”
The deputy speaker earlier said the lawmakers were happy with the governor’s policy of respecting the separation of powers which guarantees the independence of the legislature.
The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Kaka Shehu Lawan, who coordinated the brief ceremony, quoted constitutional provisions upon which the governor presented and signed the budget into law.
