Why Nigerians must focus more on state, LG budgets

Chief Adegboyega Adegoke, the Chief Financial Officer, OES Energy Services, has called on Nigerians to focus more on state and local government budgets, being the closest to them.

Adegoke made the call on Sunday while addressing journalists at an end of the year party he organised for his associates, friends and family members in Ibadan.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Adegoke is also the Mogaji of Abose compound in the Olubadan traditional lineage.

Adegoke stressed the need for Nigerians to scrutinise state and local government budgets more than the federal one, saying the state and local government budgets affect them directly.

“Why are our people so particular about Federal Government budget whereas the state and local government budgets are closer to them.

“People don’t really bother about state and local governments anymore. Our people should be more concerned with those tiers of government closer to them.

“They should show more interest in them and influence them positively for the benefit of the citizenry,” he said.

The Ibadan chief posited that there was nothing wrong for a country to borrow money, adding that this must, however, be judiciously invested in infrastructure development.

He maintained that many Nigerians were against the borrowing of more money by the government due to previous experiences where money borrowed was looted.

“There are instances you need to borrow to bail yourself out of problems because there was a time we went on the recession. Tactically, once your GDP growth is negative for two quarters consecutively, then you are in a recession.

“And part of the means of getting out of recession is to spend yourself and start putting money on road construction, infrastructure, spend the money and if you don’t have that money, you borrow the money.

“So, I don’t have issues with borrowing money. I don’t have anything against borrowing so far there is no leakage.

“When you borrow and you spend it to develop infrastructure, electricity, for example, there is no problem. I can tell you that if you solve the electricity problem in Nigeria, 60 per cent of our problems are solved,” he said.

He urged the state government to place more priority on empowerment, saying it was the best way to alleviate poverty in the society.