By Amos Aar
THE BENUE State House Assembly Standing Committee on Public Accounts has expressed disappointment over the absence of all invited officials from seven local government areas in Benue North West.
The affected officials were summoned to defend themselves against audit queries at an ongoing public hearing which commenced on Wednesday, October 16, 2024 and will last till October 26, 2024.
Chairman of the committee, Anthony Agom, who expressed displeasure at the resumed public hearing by the committee on the Report of the Auditor General for Local Government from 2021 to 2022, lamented that despite sending formal invitations, none of the officials honored the request.
He warned that the committee will not extend the public hearing and those who fail to appear will face the consequences.
In a separate event, the state House of Assembly on Friday emphasised the need for increased budgetary allocation to the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Food Security.
According to Thomas Dugeri, chairman, House standing committee on Food Security and Nutrition, who made it known Friday when he led other members of the committee on oversight visit to the ministry, the move is intended to boost food production in the state.
The Kwande West representative stressed the need for more budgetary funding for the ministry in this year’s budget, stressing the need for increased activities at the ministry.
He said doing so would enhance food security in the state.
He also asserted that without food security, there will be instability in the state and country at large.
Some members of the committee, Simon Gbabo, Elias Audu and Solomon Gila, called on the management of the ministry to initiate deliberate policies towards ensuring agricultural production in order to sustain Benue as the food basket of the nation.
They lamented that many states in the country have gone ahead of Benue in terms of agriculture.
