Members of the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Committee on Regional Development have queried the Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Momoh, for non adherence to federal character principle in situating projects of the defunct Ministry (formerly Ministry of Niger Delta).
This was as the minister appeared before the Committee alongside the Minister of State, Uba Maigari, to defend the 2024 budget performance and the 2025 proposal.
The legislators observed that the Ministry’s budget favoured the Minister’s home state of Edo over other states that were supposed to have benefitted from projects.
The Ministry was also queried for alleged lopsidedness in the Ministry’s budget.
According to them, seventy percent of the Ministry’s projects for 2024 were domiciled in Edo state.
They said that such act was wrong as the Ministry is expected to cover the interest of the entire Niger Delta region.
A member of the House of Representatives, Mr .Matthew Nwogu questioned the minister on why 70 percent of the projects for 2024 were located in Edo State.
“Mr Minister, tell us why most of these 2024 budgets (projects) are situated in Edo State?” Mr Nwogu asked.
The lawmaker wondered why other states under the Ministry were excluded while the bulk of the projects went to Edo State.
Another member of the Committee, Mr. Chinedu Ogar, also asked the Minister to explain the rationale behind seventy percent of the 2025 proposed projects of the ministry are also located in Edo State.
“Honorable Minister, I am happy that you are a product of the National Assembly. My constituents are not happy with this your budget because it negates the constitutional principle of federal character. About 70 percent of your projects are located in Edo state. Why?” Ogar questioned.
Chairman, House Committee on Regional Development, Mr. Eugene Okechukwu, urged the questions be discussed in an executive session.
The committee dissolved into an executive session to interface with the minister on the matter.
Earlier, while presenting the 2024 budget performance, the Minister had told the members that out of the N20 billion allocated to the Ministry in 2024 for capital budget, N2 billion was provided for zonal intervention in the Ministry’s budget by the House Leader, Professor Julius Ihonvbere, who is from Edo State.
The Minister told the Committee that the Ministry’s total budget proposal for 2025 was N28.9 billion comprising N24 billion for capital projects; N2.7 billion for personnel cost and N1.6 billion for recurrent.
Zonal Intervention Project
He, again, said of the amount, a total sum of N2 billion was reserved as a zonal intervention project for the Leader of the House of Representatives.
The Minister lamented that the amount earmarked for the Ministry of Regional Development to address the development needs of the five regional development commissions was inadequate.
He appealed to the joint committee to increase the budget of the ministry to enable it to address the development issues of the regions through the commissions.
The minister lamented that due to inadequate budgetary allocation, the ministry had been facing the challenges of a litany of abandoned and uncompleted projects; delay in project completion and poor performance.
“The 2024 budget of the Ministry was a budget for the Ministry for Niger Delta Development. Accordingly, the sum of N20.16 billion was allocated for capital expenditure, N1.127 billion was for overhead and N2.01 billion for personnel.
“It is important to note that out of the N20 billion allocated for capital expenditure, the Ministry’s envelope was about N18 billion while about N2 billion was provision to the Leader of the House for his zonal intervention projects.
“For the releases so far, only N1.8 billion has been released for capital, while overhead is N1.1 billion, while in respect to personnel, all the staff have been paid. The performance in relation to the releases is N100 percent,” the minister said.
He explained that the 2024 budgetary allocation of N23.336 billion to the Ministry was considered very meagre to meet the yearnings and aspirations of the region.
Inadequate Funding
noted that inadequate funding and dwindling budgetary allocation has over the years led to a plethora of abandoned projects.
He said the paucity of funds has led to the derailment of the programmes of the region as contractors delay in delivering on their contracts due to significant variations in price.
“When we took over, the first assignment I gave out was to go round to get details of all ongoing projects. It is quite amazing to know that projects that needed about N5 billion or less to complete increased to about N70 billion.
“At the end of the day, the challenge has been how do we get over this? Now contractors have refused to go back to site, insisting on payment of their debt,” he said.
He also explained that in 2025, the Ministry was allocated a total budget of N28.9 billion, made up of N24 billion for capital expenditure, overhead of N1.6 billion and personnel of N2.7 billion.
“You may wish to know that the preparation for the 2025 budget of the Ministry is one of the most difficult tasks. The Ministry has been faced with challenges in recent times because of the expansion of scope and mandate, inadequate allocation and increasing level of outstanding liability which has affected ongoing projects of the region.
“The budget made provision for about N2 billion for women empowerment and capacity building across the nation, about N1 billion livelihood support initiative across the nation and about N600 million for medical outreach for rural communities and a few other specific initiatives across the regions.
“The meagre capital ceiling of N24 billion demanded that the ministry is constrained not only to apply judicious use of funds, but must introduce certain parameters in the selection of projects which led to stepping down projects with low level of completion, completion of ongoing projects
“The Ministry would want to emphasise that all its projects are vital and very critical to the realisation of its mandate. Arising from dwindling resources and increasing level of liabilities, we are not resting on our oars as we are pushing for adequate funding to enable the Ministry to take off as the Ministry in charge of regional development. So we are soliciting your support for additional funding in order to deliver on Mr. President’s mandate,” he added.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Olajide Ipinsagba said that the transformation of the former Ministry of Niger Delta Development into the Ministry of Regional Development was a landmark decision that reflects the Federal Government’s Commitment to inclusive and sustainable national development.
Addressing Regional Needs
He said this broader mandate is a bold and strategic step towards addressing the diverse development needs of all regions across the nation while still retaining a firm focus on the peculiar challenges faced by the Niger Delta region.
According to the Ondo Senator, the creation of the Ministry of Regional Development was a recognition that development must not be restricted to one region alone but should be across the length and breadth of the country and a commitment to ensuring that no community, regardless of its size or location, is left behind in national development agenda.
He said the broader scope of the Ministry now encompasses a holistic approach to regional growth, focusing on addressing inequalities, fostering economic empowerment, and developing critical infrastructure across multiple regions, while the Niger Delta remains central to its operations due to historical and economic significance, the Ministry now serves as a beacon of hope for other regions facing similar development challenges.
Equitable Distribution of Projercts
Chairman of the House Committee on Regional Development, Eugene Okechukwu asked the Ministry to ensure an equitable distribution of projects among the various states and regions and not to create a situation where some states get more projects than others.
He however commended the President for his foresight in creating the Ministry for Regional Development, describing it as a strategic move that will boost regional development and bring about growth and development of the entire country uniformly.
He said the only way the ministry can make a headway in achieving its assigned mandate and objective was when it is adequately funded as well as equal and proportionate distribution of projects across the various zones.
He said “a worrisome development is a situation where some zones and states benefit more than others. This will no doubt cause disaffection and a distraction to the mission of the President in creating the Ministry for Regional Development. I would like to ask the Ministers to collaborate with the National Assembly to ensure adequate funding for the Ministry. I assure you that both the Senate and House Committee will give you the desired support”.
Confidence Okwuchi
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