The Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has spent a total N150million comprising N80,578,860 on Foodstuffs and catering materials as well as N72,690,000 on welfare in three months (July-September 2023), the state budget performance report, analysed by SaharaReporters revealed.
Also, Governor Lawal spent in the same period over N400million in the state on local and foreign trips, according to pages 30 to 33 of the state budget performance report.
The Lawal-led state government expended N67,100,000 on item classified as “traditional gifts” while donations gulped another N154,620,050.
The governor also spent N170,276,294.31 on International travel & transport: N221,567,094 as local travels while a paltry N6,929,500.00 was spent on private security within the period.
The state records said electricity charges for three months was over N57million.
However, the report revealed further that the government documented “zero allocations” to over 15 state general hospitals.
According to the document, the State Government has four main sources of revenue. These include Statutory Allocation from Federation Account, Value Added Tax (VAT), Capital Receipts from various sources and Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
The document reads: “The statutory allocation is the State Government’s share of the Federation Account, and it includes other Federal Government Grants. The Capital receipts has been accruing from statutory transfers, loans (both internal and external), grants from Federal Government, ADB/World Bank and other Development Partners, loan repayments to government and receipt from stabilisation account, as well as proceeds from sales of other Government assets.
“The Internally generated revenue includes taxes (personal income, capital gains, etc.), fees and fines, licenses, earnings, and sales, rent on government properties, interest repayment and dividends, reimbursement from Federal Government on pensions and gratuities etc. For about 8 years now, the internally generated revenue suffered tremendously due to effect of insecurity in the state.
“Zamfara State has the potential to be a net producer of food crops, mineral and industrial items. Indeed, an exporter of cash crops such as cotton, groundnut, rice and cassava. Its human resources, vast arable land and huge irrigation facility positions the State to be economically vibrant. The availability of mineral deposit if well harnessed and resources productively employed could not only generate increased internally sourced revenue but also create necessary conditions for increase in employment, which will ultimately increase the state GDP.
“This report includes the original approved budget appropriation for the year 2023 against each organizational unit for each of the core economic classification of expenditures (Personnel, Overheads, Capital, and Others); the actual expenditures for the quarter 2, attributed to each organizational unit, as well as the cumulative expenditures for year to date, and balances against each of the revenue and expenditure appropriations.”
