West passes $8m supplementary budget 2017-18

BY ALFRED PAGEPITU

GIZO

The Western Provincial Assembly has passed its 2017-18 supplementary budget yesterday.

The approved amount of $8,247,543 was derived from internal and external revenue sources, and had been used over the past six months on recurrent and capital subheads.

Western province minister for finance and treasury, Lester Saomasi yesterday said that the belated budget is now tabled before the Chamber based on the Provision of Provincial Government Act Sect 36 (3).

He says the passage of this ordinance should assist in the process of regularising funds that had already been received and expended over the past six months.

Mr Saomasi said the continuous uncertainty surrounding receipt of certain revenues along with others previously not anticipated in all, warrants yesterday’s presentation of the Western Province 2017/2018 Supplementary (No.1) bill.

“Tabling a supplementary bill by any Government could be a Signal of commendable or questionable performance depending much on the nature and level of expenditure to be regularised.

“In our case certain expenditure were poorly managed, some were under estimated thus resulting in notable over runs following increase in the level related activities.

“Whilst others were included in pursuance of specific executive resolution which unfortunately had to be halted awaiting the outcome of the next provincial and national elections.”

He said concerted effort was mounted to pursue some of these revenue to counter the level of aggregated expenditure noted in the December 2017 report.

He added that the provincial executive was mindful over the number of divisional programmes awaiting funds in the treasury department.

The effort was undertaken to ensure funds are made available to push them through before the 2017/18 financial year lapse.

He said that the bill clearly spells out specific subheads and related sums expended so far which the assembly was required to approve.

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