Niger’s 2025 Appropriation Act: Can Gov Bago Walk the Talk?

Laleye Dipo writes on the expectations of the people of Niger state from the 2025 Appropriation Act recently signed by Governor Mohammed Bago

Alhaji Mohammed Bago made history as the first Governor in the long history of Niger state to present his budget to the state House of Assembly in the evening.

The Governor planned to present the budget to the house on Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 4pm but the event did not commence until some few minutes to 6 pm.

The delay was said due to the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting which kept the Governor in Abuja till very late that Thursday.

However, traditional rulers, past principal officers of the House of assembly, APC chieftains and the wife of the Governor waited patiently for the arrival of the governor for the presentation of the budget, the first full circle financial estimate by the administration.

The Assembly Speaker, Alhaji Abdulmalik Sarkin- Daji did not allow the invited guests to be bored with their long wait as he threw banters at some of the invitees sparing only the traditional rulers, the governor’s wife and the media.

Only one stanza of the National anthem was sang to herald the commencement of proceedings immediately the Governor arrived.

No doubt from his countenance, the Governor was fatigued from the long day and drive to Minna but this did not affect his perfect presentation as the overcrowded assembly complex cheered and hailed him at every mention of parts of the budget palatable or dear to them.

Bago also made another history by being the first Governor to present a fiscal estimate that hit the One trillion Naira mark almost double the amount approved for the state in the 2024 budget and the Supplementary budget.

History was also made by the assembly which scrutinized and passed the budget  in record time, one week after the Governor presented the proposal to the House.

The House though rejigged the budget by moving  N1,196,097,350 from the special project/stabilization vote to the capital head of the legislature which it said was initially  “inadequate”  brought the total for the legislature’s capital expenditure to N3,116,097,350. The increment for the assembly did not affect the total budget size

of N1,558,887,565,358.00 for both capital and recurrent expenditures this year.

The Assembly however kicked at what it described as “late presentation of the budget to the house” which resulted

“in the hasty scrutiny but timely passage”.

“It is therefore recommended that the executive arm should ensure that the budget is laid before the legislature at least three months before the end of the year for proper scrutiny and for timely passage”, the Chairman of the Assembly planning and Appropriation committee and the member representing Rafi state constituency, Alhaji Zubairu Ismaila Zana said.

Bago did not waste time in assenting to the budget which he did also in record time of less than 12 hours after it was presented to him.

Speaking after signing the bill into law, the Governor commended the legislators for quickly passing the budget and attributed this to the good working relationship between the executive and the legislature promising to sustain the cordial relationship. He also vowed that the budget will be implemented to the letter.

Tagged the “Budget of Hope for Sustainability and Food Security,” a title chosen to reflect the administration’s deliberate focus on ensuring a sustainable and secured future for the people of the state through infrastructural and agricultural developments as well as urban and rural developments to reduce rural urban migration.

Like recently observed by the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Saad Abubakar, Niger state has become “one whole construction site” with new visitors missing their ways to the state capital and local government headquarters because of huge and numerous ongoing physical and infrastructural developments.

This is the “Hope” that many believe will soon be realized especially in the state capital where road construction has led to astronomical increase in transport fares even when many motorists have to abandon their vehicles for “okada” and “Keke Napep” whose owners charge cut throat fares.

This is apart from the dust haze that accompany excavations by the bulldozers and excavators of the companies handling these road projects. It is not expected that these pains will be sustained in the new year but ameliorated to the happiness of residents across the state and the local governments.

This is where the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses promised by Bago comes to mind.

According to the Governor: “Our administration is committed to ensuring an effective and efficient transportation system across the State. The CNG buses procured will soon be commissioned as N10,000,000,000.00 is earmarked for modern bus terminals and CNG stations in the State.

“Mr. Speaker, we are concerned about the indiscriminate parking of heavy trucks in our cities and urban centres. In this direction, trailer parks will be constructed at Mokwa, Madalla, Lambata, Tafa, Tegina, and Kontagora at the sum of N29,354,400,000.00 and we will sensitise the riverine communities and provide life jackets, ferries, and rescue ambulances. 

“These ferries life jackets and rescue ambulances are needed urgently because in the outgoing fiscal year not less than four major boat capsize were recorded across the River Niger incidents which claimed not less than 30 lives.

Bago  continued by saying: “As part of our efforts to alleviate the current economic realities caused by the fuel subsidy removal and the general hike in prices, this administration, in partnership with Alternative Bank, will soon flag off the distribution of 1,000 electric tricycles to ease people’s movements from one destination to another.”  

Though government has not disclosed the tonnage of agricultural products harvested from its farms this last cropping season the decision of the administration to put more impetus on farming in the new year is a very welcome development if pursued with vigour and all seriousness.

The citizenry will no doubt fault Governor Bago’s words at the end of this year’s farming season if the state fails to harness the state’s comparative advantage in agriculture to ensure food security, create employment opportunities, generate revenue, and contribute to the overall economic growth of the state.

Similarly, the people will in 2025, want to physically see the massive investment in the agricultural sub-sector promised by the Governor to which the sum of N399.031 billion is earmarked.

The people of the state will also be awaiting the return on the investments by the Chinese Consortium and African Development Bank put at N314.50 billion.

Education is said to the corner stone of the development of any society. With the establishment of two post secondary institutions by Governor Bago across the Abdulkhadir Kure University in Minna and the Abdulsalami Abubakar University of Agriculture, Mokwa along with the inherited Ibrahim Badamasi University, Lapai as well as the School of Nursing, Bida and similar institution in Bida, the state cannot be said to be short of tertiary institutions for it’s people and Nigerians in general. What is therefore needed is the financial injection that will make the schools viable.

Therefore, when Governor Bago in the budget opined that “our administration will devote more significant attention to providing adequate infrastructure in the 2025 fiscal year, emphasising the rehabilitation of existing infrastructure, provision of learning and teaching equipment, training of teachers, and construction of new structures where necessary”, the crowd in the assembly complex cheered. Their happiness was further shown with the clapping and chant of Sai Bago when he disclosed that the  sub-sector is allocated the sum of N90,926,548,740.00.

Bago also disclosed that “in pursuance of our drive to provide opportunities for mastery of skills and knowledge in selected occupations as well as the development of personality for the proper living of our students in Technical Colleges, we shall, through the Whole School Approach, overhaul the Technical Colleges in Minna, Eyagi-Bida, Jebba North, Sabon Bwari, Suleja, Kontagora, Rijau and New-Bussa”. Similarly, he revealed that the government will renovate 534 schools and construct additional 54 structures across the State. The projects, he said, will gulp N45.047 billion.

However either by omission or commission, the ministry of Information was conspicuously missing in the projects that will be executed meaning the dilapidation of the state Radio station popularly called Radio Niger, the state Printing and publishing Company also publishers of Newsline newspaper as well as the state Television station, NSTV will continue.

Another disturbing aspect of the Budget of Hope for Sustainability and Development is its over reliance on loans and grants and low internally generated revenue which experts believe if not properly managed could lead to the state being enmeshed in loan repayment for a number of years to come.