Skip to main content

Jagaba on Gov el-Rufai's 2020 Budget


Fallout of lopsided implementation of state budget in the education sector


By Nasiru Jagaba
jagabanasiru@gmail.com                                

Let me start by commending the Governor of Kaduna state for being consistent in maintaining the January to December budget year. This provides some high level of fiscal and economic sustainability in the State. My commendation may come as a surprise to many who know that I have been a consistent critic of his government as the national youth Leader (out-going now) of Southern Kaduna Peoples Union (SOKAPU).

 My stand has not changed as I remain a dogged fighter of injustice regardless of its form of manifestation. However, in analyzing governance, one must uphold a higher level of objectivity by appreciating progress (no matter how small) while fighting for fairness, equity and justice.

That aside, I have committed myself to tracking governance in Kaduna state and Nigeria to ensure that the right of citizens to development is guaranteed.

As many of us are aware the 2020 draft budget has been presented to the Kaduna State House of Assembly by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Hadiza Balarabe. It is now expected that the Assembly will scrutinize the appropriateness and distribution of the N257,908,819,733.66 budget made up of recurrent allocation of N67,877,232,798.52 and capital expenditure of N190,031,586,935.14.

Looking at it from the surface, one is tempted to acknowledge the effort of the government in maintaining a ratio that favors capital expenditure (with the recurrent expenditure not exceeding 30% over the past five years). Again the capital expenditure proposed this year is about the highest ever.

However, on deeper interrogation one's excitement will be depressed, as budget performance over the years has left little to be desired. 

So also, if one considers the lopsidedness in the spread of development in the State; while the Northern side (pre-dominantly Hausa/Fulani Muslims) of the State enjoy government presence, the Southern Kaduna(pre-dominantly non- Hausa/Fulani Christian) area is glaringly left to suffer for supposedly not being in the good books of the Governor. 

This has fueled more mutual mistrust and suspicion between the people of Southern Kaduna and the Governor than any other time in the history of the State. It is not in contention that the Governor has never hidden his disdain for the region, even when he should be a father for all. 

It is in view of this brief highlights above that I challenge the government of Mallam Nasir Ahmed Elrufai to:

1. make public the breakdown geographical spread (Kaduna North, Central and South Senatorial zones) of the sectorial budgets of Kaduna state from 2016-2019;

2. show the breakdown geographical spread (Kaduna North, Central and South Senatorial zones) of the sectorial budgets performance of Kaduna state from 2016-2019 (mid-year);

3. show the number of projects started and completed in each of the three Senatorial zones from 2016 to 2019;

4. show us one community in Southern Kaduna or largely non-Hausa/Fulani that has received his developmental attention in comparison to Rigasa, Ungwan Dosa etc;

5. make public the geographical spread of how the government intends to spend the N190,031,586,935.14 proposed Capital expenditure;

6. also, the N45,473,026,469.45 external loan, how much is each Senatorial zone is getting.

7. Other issues are that: the 2020 budget is proposing to spend over 30 billion naira on roads, can the Governor also make public the geographical distribution of the roads to be constructed;

8. finally, there are rumors that Kaduna is worst off today in all health indicators compared to before 2015 despite huge donor funds spend; can the government comes out with evidence to dispel this rumors. 

I will stop here, and challenge the government to demonstrate publicly in action its rhetorics of being pro-people, fair, equitable and just to all sections of the State. The government is said to be a pacesetter in governance reforms that promote transparency, accountability and responsiveness to citizen's engagement. Now is the time to proof it as not being stage-managed to hoodwink the international community.

The good people of Kaduna state,         Nigerians and International communities await your response on the above issues raised.

Jagaba who writes from Kaduna is the President, Network for the Rights of Indigenous and Marginalized People.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Why States may be unable to pay new minimum wage -Commissioner

Citizens listening with rapt attention  By YUSUF GOJE C ommissioner, Planning and Budget Commission Kaduna state, Mohammed  Sani Dattijo has queried the rationale behind the proposed upward review  of the minimum wage, which he said compels even states that are not  viable to play ball. Making the assertion at the  recently concluded Citizens' Consultation forum on Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2019-2021  held in Kaduna, Dattijo said:"The minimum wage should be moved from the  exclusive to the concurrent list, even though Kaduna state is  healthier than most states, there are states that cannot afford the  increase in minimum wage. If this is not done, the increase in minimum wage will only be on paper but difficult to implement by many states, resulting in labor disputes". He stressed that the exclusiveness of this piece of  legislation which empowers only the Federal government to de...

Yearning for sound Fiscal Responsibility

Fundamentals for good governance G overnment and Citizens' Groups in Kaduna state have teamed up to engender effective budget tracking and implementation to create the enabling environment for increased internally generated revenue (IGR), in accordance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS). This was the fallout of a three-day eye opening event, facilitated by Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL-ECP), in collaboration with the Kaduna state government. The engagement touched on the urgent need to conduct budget trend analysis across key sectors - Economics, Social, Law/Justice as well as Administration, including audit report, all aimed ultimately at putting Kaduna state in good stead for sustained economic growth. Addressing participants drawn from government and citizens' groups, Mr Timothy Effiong, a Public Financial Management Consultant, maintained that even in Kaduna a state that is very policy-driven, there exist gaps in g...

Coalition urges COP-27 to fast track advocacy against Climate Change

  Participants in a group photograph after the event in Kaduna By EDDY OCHIGBO,  A  coalition  of environmental organizations in Kaduna, under the aegis Extinction Rebellion (XR) - a global movement which seeks to persuade governments to act justly on climate change and ecological emergency - has hosted a pre-COP27, in partnership with Bridge-that-Gap Initiative, to galvanize the campaign against climate change, as the   the 27th Conference of Parties slated for Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt kicks off. In an exclusive interview with NATIONAL ACCORD, one the coordinators of the event in Kaduna metropolis, Mr Zinta Akpoko, revealed that  COP27, Egypt could become a turning point of the campaign, given that forerunners of the conference have since pledged to relentlessly push to prioritize climate financing for developing nations.  "The effect of climate change is very evident and we need to be very frank  by telling the truth about the inherent dangers tha...

TRIBUTE: Dr Bala Takaya 1930 - 2018

  Bala John Takaya (2nd Left) at a function recently By Nasiru Jagaba Again, with rude shock, death has come upon us in the early hours of Sunday, 27th May, 2018. It is with deepest regret that the Middle Belt Youth Wing of Middle Belt Forum mourns the death of our President, Father, Mentor, and a tireless advocate of equity, fairness and justice, Dr Bala John Takaya, the President of Middle Belt Forum has silently closed the door of life and departed from us, never to return.  68 years old Takaya, an unparalleled University Senior Lecturer, a distinct politician who served as the  Secretary to State Government of the old Gongola State, a member of the 1987 Political Bureau. On the fight to restore democratic system of governance, he worked hand in hand with Chief Solomon Lar. Also, in 1999 he was the governorship candidate of the All People’s Party, APP later ANPP.  He is much esteemed in the community of Middle Belt and generally recognized as on...

Making a case for Kaduna's Agric sector

By Yusuf Goje I t will be most appropriate to start by commending the Kaduna State House of Assembly for breaking the jinx of holding a legislative public hearing for the first on the 2020 draft budget. This provided citizens and civil society partners the avenue to make submissions on the various sectors of interest towards improved public service delivery and value for money. The Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment & Development (CALPED), a civil society working on governance reforms, submitted a memo and made a presentation making a case for increased funding for the agricultural sector and use of technology to collect data for effective planning, among other critical issues. Our presentation aligned with the words of Akinwumi Adesina, the erudite and charismatic President of the African Development Bank, who rightly posited that, “making agriculture profitable and ‘cool’ for young people in Africa is key to lifting millions out of pove...