TUE, JANUARY 30 2018-theG&Bjournal-The governor of Plateau State Simon Lalong has signed the 2018 appropriation bill of N146,405,074,921 billion passed by the Plateau State House of Assembly into law.
The governor who presented the budget tagged ” Budget of Rescue and Consolidation ” earlier in December 2017 said the initial amount was increased by 0.63% ” as a result of the inclusion of constituency projects and other critical areas of needs that warrants such expenditure “
” Seventy Billion, Five Hundred and Five Million, Four Hundred and Seventy Seven Thousand, Five Hundred and Thirty Naira (N70,505,477,530:00) representing 48.16% is earmarked for capital expenditure while 51.84% is earmarked to be spent as recurrent expenditure amounting to the sum of Seventy Five Billion, Nine Hundred Million, Five Hundred and Ninety Seven Thousand, Three Hundred and and Ninety one Naira (N75,900,597,391:00). This shows an increase of the sum of Nine Hundred and Eighteen Million, Eighty Thousand Five Hundred and Sixty Nine Naira (N918,085,569:00) only representing 0.63% from the initial amount budgeted “.
Lalong who emphasized that the budget is anchored on the five pillar policy thrust if his administration which are peace, security and good governance, Human Capital Development and Social welfare, Agriculture and rural development, Entrepreneurship and Industrialization and Physical infrastructure and environment appealed that “all agencies of government rise to the challenge if remitting all revenues appropriately” to achieve the aim of rescuing the people and that the people “reciprocate by paying their taxes and other levies”.
Speaking earlier, the Commissioner for Finance, Tamakawat Weli noted it is a deficit budget that will be funded from internal and external sources because of the poor income of the state.
