Desmond Elliot, Six Others to Probe Fashola's 2015 Budget

 

Actor turned lawmaker, Desmond Elliot, is part of a seven-member committee of lawmakers that has been set up to review former Lagos Governor, Babatunde Fashola’s 2015 budget, DailyTimes report.

Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, in a letter to the Lagos State House of Assembly, on Tuesday, titled “Re-ordering of priorities under the 2015 Budget”, stated that the Fashola Budget of N489.690 billion had recorded 60 per cent overall performance as at June but lacks priorities.

Ambode took over from Fashola on May 29, 2015. Since then, he has cancelled some of the contracts and agreements entered into by the Fashola’s administration, and also released indicting information about the amounts approved by the last administration for certain contracts.

“This level of performance has made it imperative to go back to the drawing board to structure a more conscientious approach to tilt our total investment in the remaining months in order to meet the target capital/recurrent ratio of 51:49,” the governor stated in the letter.

According to Ambode, N23.97 billion will be re-ordered; and of this, N18.278 billion is needed for capital projects, while N5.697 billion is for recurrent expenditure. Reasons for the re-ordering, according to the letter, include the construction of a pedestrian bridge at Ojodu Berger, construction of fly-over bridges at Ajah Roundabout and Pen Cinema, Agege.