Posted by From John Iwori in Yenagoa on
Bayelsa State government has approved the sum of N35.5bn for a supplementary budget.
Bayelsa State government has approved the sum of N35.5bn for a supplementary budget.
This was disclosed by Commissioner for Information, Culture, Tourism and Strategy, Mr. Oronto Douglas while answering questions on the outcome of the state executive council meeting.
He stated that the supplementary budget became necessary in order to develop areas such as health, education and infrastructures.
According to Oronto, out of the amount, N763m was being budgeted for the upgrading of the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) Yenagoa.
Explaining why the state took the decision, he said: "We have come to realise that we the people of Bayelsa State must take our destiny into our hands. We have realized that federal projects in this state are not being executed.
'The Federal Government has refused to execute these projects. And we are saying, we cannot allow our people to suffer and so a task force was set up to look into the FMC owned by the federal government but donated by the state and managed by the federal arm.
"We discovered the deplorable condition in the hospital. In the supplementary budget, N763m was budgeted for the hospital, to enable FMC return to excellence in the shortest possible time."
Enumerating other federal projects taken over by the state, Oronto stated that Mbiama/Yenagoa Road was a federal road which the state took over and dualised, also the federal road linking the Niger Delta University (NDU) has been taken over by the state. Solar electric power has also been installed on major roads in the state capital.
"We can no longer continue to wait for the federal government," the commissioner noted.
Other proposed projects that would commence soon which the executive council resolved, according to him include the construction of a public park, which 29 hectares of land have been acquired opposites Government House; a road to link Ekeremo the headquarters of one of the riverine Local Government Area in the state, is to be constructed immediately.