• Low Implementation of Capital Budget Ruffles Lawmakers

The low implementation of the capital component of the 2017 N7.441 trillion by the federal government is currently causing major unease among federal lawmakers amid fears that it may affect their bid for re-election into the National Assembly in the 2019 polls.

The constituency projects, also called zonal intervention projects, are contained in the N2.1 trillion capital component of the 2017 budget, out of which only N440 billion has been released.

The low release of funds has ensured that only high priority capital projects are currently receiving the attention of the government, causing a complete neglect of the constituency projects for which N100 billion was appropriated.

Investigation gathered that the executive has not released a kobo for any item listed under the constituency projects, even though some of the items have been listed in procurement adverts by several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government.

The lawmakers are further ruffled by the recent push of the executive arm of government to restore the fiscal year from January to December to allow for an organic budget calendar, as this may further affect the performance of the 2017 budget.

While they generally accept that a predictable budget calendar ensures better economic planning particularly for the organised private sector which is dependent on public spending, the lawmakers fear that the proposal to roll over up to 60 per cent of capital projects would further affect the constituency projects.

At a recent hearing by the Senate on the performance of the 2017 budget, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udo Udoma had told the Senate Joint Committee on Appropriations and Finance that MDAs have been instructed to roll over most of their capital projects, to the 2018 budget.

Investigation gathered that the lawmakers are highly concerned about the impact this would have on their re-election bid in the 2019 general elections.

A highly placed source said the decision to isolate the constituency project items under the N100 billion Zonal Intervention Funds, in a separate section from the statutory budget of the MDAs, was deliberate.

“Even if this has happened before now, the executive deliberately did it this time around because for them it is not priority. Despite any detente, the executive still considers the constituency projects a ploy to make money by the lawmakers. Remember the tensions caused by the constituency issue last year, at some point House members even said they would not entertain any request from the executive, until ZIFs (Zonal Intervention Funds) are released,” the source explain.

“2018 is just a few months away, and that is campaign year. 2019 is just the election year. If the projects are not done, it would affect the lawmakers. Many have promised their constituents that they would implement certain projects, and when such is not on ground during campaigns, they would not be able to point to what they have done, and why they should be re-elected,” the source said.

“The 2016 capital budget, N1.7 trillion was not fully implemented. Also, just about 80 per cent of the 2016 ZIF was released after intense negotiations. Obviously lawmakers who could not finish their constituency projects from that budget, would be relying on the current budget, and must have assured their people. Now no funds are being released under the 2017 budget, and it is obviously not a priority to the executive,” the source explained further.

The source disclosed that about 50 per cent of the ZIF could be released, but added that it would be hard for the lawmakers to get anymore than that in the current budget.

“It is not for nothing that the executive repeatedly says it is concentrating on priority projects, and these priority projects are in all the zones anyway,” the source said.
Lawmakers from the Senate and the House of Representatives who spoke off record expressed their displeasure at the development.

“We are the closest to our people, hence these projects. We promised our people, if we do not fulfill our promises, why would they re-elect us? Our constituents just want to see the boreholes, the primary health care centres, among others they would not understand the struggle here,” a lawmaker said.

Another lawmaker said it would be unfair to expect them to use their personal allowances for the constituency projects.

“Even our salaries are being delayed under this dispensation, and we get nothing extra. We cannot expend that on our constituencies. Admittedly, some of our colleagues use their personal funds for some things back home, particularly in places where the competition is stiffer. If you want to return, you cannot wait until the ZIF is released before fulfilling some of the promises to the constituents,” he said.

A House member further said that the hearing at the Senate was ‘closely monitored’ by the members of the green chambers who were happy with the resolutions.

“The resolution cautioned against selective implementation of the capital budget, which is where our projects are. That is our way of demanding of the implementation of the ZIF items” he said.

Reacting to the development, the Deputy Spokesman of the Senate, Senator Ben Murray Bruce expressed hope that the constituency projects would be funded, as they benefit the people more, not the lawmakers.

Speaking in a telephone interview, Ben Bruce said the project is for the people who get angry when they are not implemented as promised by “If you promised a link road that costs N20 million, and you do not have the link road, then people would be angry. If you promise a borehole because people have dirty water and they have monkeypox, because of the dirty water and dirty environment, and you cannot provide clean water, then they would be angry, because they put you into office and you cannot provide them clean water.”

“In a place like Bayelsa state which is riverine, no toilets anywhere, people use the bathroom (ease themselves in the waters) and drink it at the same time, are you surprised there is monkey pox? So something as simple as water, which does not benefit the senator or the House of Representatives, it benefits the poor man who needs clean water, and then you do not deliver, first you have sick people, you have an epidemic, you have angry people, people who cannot understand that in a modern economy, some people do not have clean water to drink, who do you blame?”

“Last year, my constituency project was providing solar power, so children can do their homework at night. This year, its agriculture (fish, corn, rice) , people have to feed. If I do these, how would that have a negative impact on the economy, and why would the government not fund such projects? None of the projects benefit me, they benefit the people who voted me into office. So constituency project is not a bad word, not a bad thing to do and i am glad we have it in the budget. I hope they fund it,” the Senator said.