Part Of The Adamawa State's Budget Will Be Financed Through Our Looted Monies Refunded By EFCC...Says Finance Commissioner

By Tom Garba, Yola
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Adamawa state Commissioner of finance has yesterday disclosed that the government of the state will fun part of it's budget with the state's looted remittances from looted monies refunded to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission,EFCC, from corrupt public officials in the state to balance its N44.08 billion deficit.

As a means of blocking leakages,the state government has also declared its plans to commence implementation of the Treasury Single Account by the end of the first quarter of the new year.

The development was made known through the state Commissioner of Finance Alh. Mahmud Sali Yunusa while at the government House for the budget of N120.1 billion estimates for 2016.

He stated that the government would deflate the N44.08 billion deficit in the proposed budget by going tough on implementation of new tax regimes, which it will also monitor with strict compliance.

Reacting to a question on how the government planned to fund the huge deficit in view of dwindling allocations to the state, Yunusa maintained that the government had initially planned to approach the EFCC for looted funds which the anti graft agency had retrieved from its corrupt officials to be repatriated back into the state coffers.

In the same vein,he maintained that all assets moveable and immovable confiscated by the EFCC, would be required to be released to the state government who may also liquidate them if they were necessary.

" P.A.Y.E and withholding taxes form the bulk of expected revenues, in our outlook for the year. "

"And we know there are some organizations including government operated institutions who have not been forthcoming with their P. A Y. E"

"However,under the current dispensation all Ministries Departments an Agencies will be adequately monitored for compliance."

The breakdown showed that the government anticipates to generate N8,183,300,675.00 as Internally Generated Revenue while Statutory transfers as its own share from the Federation Account is put at N42, 149,514,154.00 and N15,988,709,400.00 is expected from Value Added Tax from federal revenues.

Government also indicated that, N6,223,420,200.00 is expected as inflows for State of Emergency and additional N2.5 billion for Ecological funds still from the federation account.

From the sub-total of N1 billion estimates for exchange rate differential, gives a total of N67,861,643,755.00 as the total revenue profile for N120.1 billion proposed by Adamawa state government for 2016 fiscal year gives a deficit of N44,081,913,000.00.

The ministry of Works is allocated N20.2 billion,followed by the Government House which is allocated N8.4 billion while the office of the Secretary to the State Government, allocated the third largest of the budget with N7.7 billion.

The finance commissioner,further disclosed that the deficits will be funded through bonds which he said the government plans to take later on, foreign aids and also through looted funds retrieved from the EFCC which it will request to be repatriated back to the state.

" If we have to realize this budget then we have to be very aggressive," Yunusa said

According to him,"by the end of the first quarter, we intend to implement TSA to block all leakages."

Meanwhile,the Secretary to the Adamawa State Government, Dr. Umar Bindir has disclosed that the state government has enlisted the services of reputable revenue consulting firm for the purpose of improving the IGR collection for the state.

According to him, with the new tax consultants, it would digitalize all revenue collecting avenues for the state,maintaining that it would work round the clock to ensure that whatever is due to the state enters its coffers.