By Precious Oluwole

The Ondo State House of Assembly, today passed the 2024 supplementary budget of over 96 billion naira into law.

This brought the 2024 budget to a total of N492,045bn.

The initial approved budget by the house was over 395 billion naira.

The State government proposed over 92 billion supplementary budget to the house, which was revised upward by over 4 billion naira, making it over 96 billion naira.

Earlier, the Chairman, House Standing Committee on Finance and Appropriation, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi while presenting findings of the committee said that the Committee observed that replacing the existing first and second schedules will accommodate all the necessary adjustments required the initial approved sum of (N395,257,000.000.00) only, in the year 2024 Appropriation Law now been reviewed upward to N492,045,100.000.00.

That some of the Heads and sub-heads of the year 2024 Appropriation Law has bcen overtaken by inflationary pressure to the extent that funds allocated to have them have been exhausted and it would require an additional funds for maximum accomplishment of target goals before the fiscal year.

That the Revised Budget gives a clear expressions to the belief of the intelligible Budgeting for rapid development.

He said after a detailed consideration of the proposal, the Committee wishes to recommend to the house that the quest for the State Government to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal as well as the need to service the new minimum wage necessitated the review of the budget.

He added that it approved the extra revenue of N96,788,1 00,000.00 only from recurrent/ capital expenditure component of the year 2024 Budget and re-allocated funds among existing programmes within the recurrent component.

The Committee recommended that the State Government should ensure that the provisions of the revised budget are conscientiously applied to the needs stated therein so that the good intention behind the dispensation would be fully attained.

Subsequently,a bill for a law to amend the establishment of OIl Producing Areas Development Commission (OSOPADEC), and to make provision for the composition of the commission and for ancillary matters was passed into law after sailing through the third reading.

Earlier, while presenting the report of the committee at the plenary session, the Chairman of the Committee,Primate Oluwatoyin Allen representing Ese- Odo Constituency noted that the bill will address and correct lacuna identified in the principal law which intends to accommodate the current realities in the mandate area.

According to the report, the bill when passed into law, will create more avenue for the commission to serve the people in the mandate areas better.

Also,the proposed 2024 Budget of the eighteen local government areas of ondo state has been passed into law after scaling through the third reading.

Presenting the report of the Committee,its Chairman, Oluwatoyin Japhet said that the Committee observed that the budget proposals gave clear expressions to the visions of the Councils to complete on-going projects with a view to bringing succor to the generality of the citizens of the Local Governments.

It stated that the 2024 expenditure were intelligibly projected and set at sustainable level taking cognizance of the present economic realities, adding that, the projections in their budgets would tremendously make the completion of on-going projects and initiation of new ones a reality;

The Committee stressed the need for the Councils to gear-up their revenue drive mechanism so that the identified sources of internally generated revenue should not amount to mere allocation of figures.

The Committee recommended that all Local Government Councils should, ensure that the provisions of the Budget are applied to the needs stated therein;

That the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs should take all the steps necessary to propel all Councils to embark on internally generated revenue drive in line with extant laws with a view to attaining their revenue target.

That the Local Government Councils should make vigorous efforts to block all identified leakages as much as possible..