CCIDESOR urges citizens to participate in LG budget preparation, monitoring 

By, Chinelo Kodilichukwu Enugu 

The Citizens Centre for Integrated Development and Social Rights (CCIDESOR) and Nigeria Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Situation Room have tasked citizens on participation in local government budget preparation and monitoring.

The Executive Director of CCIDESOR, Emeka Ononamadu, gave the task on Sunday in Enugu during an ongoing Budget Participation and Capital Budget Monitoring Training. 

Ononamadu noted that Nigerians and the vast majority living in suburb and rural council areas had been shortchanged over the years do to their docile nature.

“Our people fail to ask questions and get clarification on what is happening to the monthly and yearly budget of their immediate council areas and allowing politicians and their cronies to continue to manipulate them,” he said.

The executive director noted that objectives and benefits of budget participation and budget monitoring included: to verify the existence of budgeted projects and to assess compliance with due process in project award.

“To determine the cost and value of projects; to evaluate the quality and standard of implemented projects; to determine the relevance of projects to community needs and to assess the level of community participation.

“To establish the Implementation timeline of projects; to evaluate the utilisation and Impact of the projects; and to assess equity in project distribution across wards within a given council area among others,” he said.

He said that CCIDESOR in collaboration with Nigeria Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Situation Room, would carrying the field practice of the training in Abia, Imo and Enugu States.

Speaking, one of the participants at the training, Mr Samuel Ani, appreciated the CSOs for coming out with modalities to make those in localities participate in the practical development of their areas.

Ani, who is the Chairman of the Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria (YOWICAN), assured that the youths would be mobilised to participate in the affairs of their council areas to check waste and lack in localities.

Another participant, Onyinye Mamah, Executive Director, Heroine Women Foundation, said that a functional council system would benefit women the more and help to rise their socioeconomic status.

Mamah, who is also the President, Women Support women for Human Empowerment and Mentorship Initiative, said that women groups are backing the training and its field survey to make the local government system work for all.

A total of 30 participants drawn from CSOs, youths and women groups as well as the media attended the training.

The training was organised by CCIDESOR and Nigeria Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) Situation Room with sponsorship of UK International Development.