Lawmakers approves N71bn budget for Okowa 12days to handover

From Idris Umar Momoh, Warri

Less than two weeks to the expiration of the tenure of Senator Ifeanyi Okowa as the governor of Delta State, the State House of Assembly approved the governor’s N71 billion supplementary appropriation bill.

Daily Trust reports that on Tuesday,  the governor forwarded a letter to the house, requesting it to consider and pass the supplementary budget, which he said is for the 2023 Fiscal year, ending December 31.

He said the budget consists of N5.6 Billion as recurrent and, N65.5 Billion as Capital Expenditure respectively.

Okowa added that the supplementary budget became necessary to pay for critical projects, activities of government as well as fund ongoing projects across the State in the 2023 fiscal year.

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Considering the bill for passage, the Deputy Speaker of the State Assembly, Rt. Hon. Ochor Christopher Ochor, commended the lawmakers for what he described as their legislative ingenuity in the passage of the bill.

Ochor said that the eventual passage of the bill would help in scaling up the infrastructural and capital developments in the State.

Earlier, the  Majority leader, Hon. Ferguson Onwo, commended the governor for proposing the bill, which he noted was aimed at ensuring the completion of ongoing developmental projects in the State.

Other lawmakers who spoke in support of the bill noted that it was aimed at boosting the welfare of the generality of Deltans.