The Kogi State House of Assembly committee on Lands and Environment has sent the staff of the Agency back due to the inability of the Director General, Hon. Nazir Yusuf Ochi to appear in person to defend the Agency’s budget without any genuine reason.
Hon. Jibril Abu, the member representing Ajaokuta Constituency, and Chairman, House Committee on Lands and Environment sent the management back when they appeared before the committee for the 2024 budget defence on Friday in Lokoja.
The committee directed them to go back and re-appear for the agency’s budget defence next week Monday with the presence of the DG or risk zero budget allocation.
Hon. Jibril Abu lamented that if Kogi State Governor Alhaji Yahaya Bello could appear before the house to present the State budget, some heads of MDAs have no reason to fail to appear.
He regarded it as a big slap on the faces of the lawmakers to see some heads of MDAs ignoring the constituted power of this hallow Chamber, stressing that the number one Citizen of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, suspended all functions of the State to present the 2024 budget.
“He respected this Assembly because he has a strong belief in the rule of law. But we are very disappointed that some Heads of MDAs are undermining our powers by sending their subordinates to defend the budget they have a faint knowledge of.
“All MDAs attended Technical defense of their budget; therefore having known that the Governor has laid the draft budget before the House, there is no excuse for any MDA Head not to be on AMBER waiting for the invitation by the House to defend their Budget.”
The committee chairman noted that it is totally condemnable and unacceptable that the DG to fail to appear before the house to defend their budget, adding that the House, out of its magnanimity have decided to give him another saving grace to appear before them on Monday 18th December 2023, failure of which would force the house to record zero budget for the Agency.
Hon. Abu cautioned government officials on any act of undermining the efforts and genuine intentions of the government, stressing that the House would not take it lightly with anyone undermining the institution.
He said Governor Bello means well for the State therefore anyone that finds himself or herself below the line will be corrected as should be. The same instrument will be used in the government of the incoming Governor Usman Ododo.
He went further to quote Governor Yahaya Bello’s popular statement of “Kogi must develop”.
