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Reps Demand Full Breakdown Of Solid Minerals Ministry’s 2024 Budget

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5 hours ago

Nov 22, 2024.

The House of Representatives Committee on Solid Minerals has requested a comprehensive report from the Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, detailing the utilization of funds allocated to the ministry in the 2024 budget.

This demand was made during a budget defense session where the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Mary Ogbe, represented the Minister.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the committee, chaired by Gbewfi Jonathan Gaza, expressed dissatisfaction with the ministry’s failure to account for budget expenditures, insisting on a detailed report by next Tuesday.

“We were clear in our requests. Every line must be addressed, including all projects, budget codes, appropriated amounts, contractors, award dates, and project statuses. Nigerians deserve transparency regarding how public funds are utilized,” Gaza emphasized.

The committee also criticized the absence of critical project details and warned against further submission of incomplete reports. “No more half-baked documents,” Gaza added, urging the ministry to include procurement advertisements and Federal Executive Council (FEC) decisions in its revised submission.

Earlier, Ogbe disclosed that the ministry was allocated ₦25.05 billion in the 2024 budget, comprising ₦894.4 million for overhead costs and ₦23.15 billion for capital expenditures. She reported that ₦745.4 million, or 83 percent of the overhead allocation, had been released and fully utilized.

However, only ₦2.72 billion (11 percent) of the capital allocation had been released as of October 31, with the remaining funds tied up in ongoing procurement processes and pending FEC approvals.

Ogbe assured the committee of the ministry’s commitment to transparency, noting that expenditure on released funds had achieved 100 percent performance in non-debt recurrent expenditure.

However, she explained that capital project implementation was delayed due to the bottom-up cash planning system, which mandates execution before payment.

The House committee reiterated the importance of accountability, stressing that a thorough report would ensure oversight and restore public trust in the ministry’s operations.