2024 Supplementary Budget of N437bn scales Cross River Assembly

The Cross River State House of Assembly on Thursday passed the supplementary appropriation bill of NGN437 billion, one week after Governor Bassey Otu requested the House to do so on July 18th 2024.

The new budget size of NGN437,876,029,437.51 (Four hundred and thirty-seven billion, eight hundred and seventy-six million, twenty-nine thousand, four hundred and thirty -seven naira, fifty-one kobo) is a 38.472 percent increase from the NGN296,985,531,978.00 initially passed and signed into law.

The breakdown is as follows: Personnel/Overhead Expenditure – NGN151, 684,649,487.66
Capital Expenditure – NGN283,333,644,824.34
Statutory Expenditure – NGN2,857,735,125.51

The Assembly sat, analyzed it and passed it, in a record time, with the Chairman of the Finance and Appropriations Committee, Cyril Omini (APC, Yakurr 1) saying it went through the entire legislative process while presenting his committee’s report.

“This is the first time in about a decade that we would be passing a supplementary bill as contemplated by the 1999 Constitution (as altered); this is so as in recent times the House has been faced with a downward review of each year’s budget thus resulting in the amendment of the Appropriation Law instead of passing a Supplementary Appropriation Law,” Mr. Omini said.

Meanwhile, newsmen gathered that the public and especially Civil Society Organizations has eyes on open government principles, budgeting, transparency, and accountability which in their estimation were not carried along in the process thus fueling speculations of the intent of government.

By: Archibong Emmanuel
(Snr. Reporter)