Raphael Ede, Enugu
Enugu State House of Assembly has passed into law the bill seeking to authorise the issuance and appropriation of N7,185,000.00 for capital and recurrent expenditure for 2019 fiscal year.
The law passed during plenary yesterday, was to enable the executive transfer monies originally provided in the appropriation law from one ministry to the other as well as monies meant for one project transferred to another project.
Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi presented a budget appropriation of N109,199, 243,000.00 for the 2019 fiscal year.
Explaining the merits of the bill, leader of the House,Ikechukwu Ezeugwu, said the bill does not alter the 2019 budget of over N109 billion.
“This does not alter the appropriation. What we are doing is to move money from one section to the other.”
He said N1.5 billion, which was originally voted for the completion of the International Conference Centre was reduced to N7 billion, thereby saving about N800,000.00, for other projects.
Ezeugwu said the executive cannot spend any money without authorisation from the legislature, pointing out, “ that was why the executive came to us.”
In a related development, the House also passed into law the bill seeking to amend the law that established the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Enugu, to allow for a multi campus status, which it was originally designed before it was altered in 2004, which made a one campus university. Before the passage of the bill, it generated controversy as some members wanted the university campus to be sited in their zone as well.
