Abia Speaker, Ikuku Declares 2020 Budget Defence Open

The Speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Chinedum Enyinnaya Orji, on Tuesday declared the 2020 Budget Defence open.

The Speaker warned against any expenditure of government funds without appropriation.

The Speaker advised all Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Abia State Government to attend the committee sittings to defend their various Budgets.

“All Ministries, Departments and Agencies must come to the House of Assembly to defend their respective budgets. That is the requirement of the law.

“It is important that the Accountant General and his team ensure that all monies are appropriated.

“For you to avoid prosecution, you must ensure that whatever you do is in accordance with the Law,m”, he said.

The Speaker went ahead to warn that any MDA that fails to appear before the Appropriation Committee will be appropriated with Zero Fund.

“In these days of Freedom of Information, we must be careful in the expenditure of government money”, he emphasised.

Earlier in his address, Chairman of the Abia State House of Assembly Committee on Appropriation, Rt Hon Kennedy Azubuike Njoku, assured the Speaker that his committee would break the record this time to ensure that the 2020 Appropriation Bill is passed into Law before the 30th of December, 2019.

“We want to break the record and ensure that the 2020 Appropriation Bill is passed into Law before the 30th of December, 2019.

“We want to work and ensure that before 2020, the Budget would have been passed into Law” he said.

Deputy Speaker of the House, Rt Hon Ifeanyi Uchendu, Clerk of the House Sir John Pedro Irokansi, and other Principal Officers of the Abia State House of Assembly witnessed the event which had The Accountant General of the State and the Executive Secretary of the State Planning Commission, among others, in attendance.