House of Representatives
…as Sports Minister laments pleads for budget increase to fix 5 national stadia, mini sports centres
By Levinus Nwabughiogu
ABUJA-House of Representatives yesterday said it will ensure that activities and programmes meant to develop Nigeria youths get adequate funding..
It said that the days of sloganeering about the future of the country without properly empowering the youths were over.
The Chairman, House commitee on youth and Development, Rep. Yemi Adaramodu (APC-Ekiti) made the vow at the 2021 budget defence of the Federal Ministry of Sports and Youth Development on Monday in Abuja.
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Adaramodu bemoaned the lip service being paid to the youth development, stressing that the ministry has always met poor budgetary allocation.
He said: “The issues of N12.5bn to be released this year for youth development, we want to make sure that the ministry is given the very free hand so that it will not end up in another middle ministry or agency.
“If the government wants to give loans and grants to the youth, let the ministry do it directly, let me generate the youth, they have the database so let them do it.
“The idea of creating another lord somewhere and they will be lording it over the ministry, the honourable members will take it as a very serious task and compel the suppose authority to ensure things are done well, really make sure things are done well in Nigeria.
“In the next budget, the committee and the ministry will make a very strong case; if truly we are not just mouthing it that the youth constitute about 65 percent of the population, and we are not doing what we are suppose to do.
“We have to ensure that enough funds are given to the ministry; we rather take care of the youth or leave them like that and face the consequences,” he said.
The chairman said that taking a look at the 2020 budget performance, the 2021 budget could amount to “lip service” if not improved
“There was a time I accosted the minister to inquire how the ministry monitors the N-Power programme of the Federal Government.
“This committee and the Committee on SDGs was mandated by the Speaker to inquire into the N-Power operations in Nigeria.
“We found out that, the ministry of youth that is suppose to be in charge of youths in Nigeria is oblivious of what is happening to the youths that are being taken care of in the N-Power.
“When you have programmes for the youth and the minister in charge of the ministry of youths is not in charge or a part of it, then how are you going to get to the supposed beneficiaries.
“Hence, we always have all these type of inconsistency and haphazardly implemented policies,” he said.
Earlier, the Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Mr Sunday Dare told the lawmakers that his ministry by its mandate had a dual responsibility.
“We habour the youth who gave us a sample of their voice just in the last two weeks and sports; at least over 120 million Nigerians love sports be it sports or Athletics”, he said.
The minister said that when the budget of the ministry is compared to the attention given to the ministry, “it becomes extremely problematic.”
Dare recalled that the 2020, capital expenditures of the ministry was N2.8 billion but only N1.3 billion was released.
He regret the consistent shortfall in the capital expenditures over the last four yer.
The minister added that the overhead cost for the ministry was N13.2 billion but N1billion was released while the personnel cost was N48 billion which is administered by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.
“Our 2020 performance is 50 per cent and we only got the releases in September 2020 and we are trying to complete procurement processes”, he said.
For the 2021 budget, Dare said that N2 billion was allocated for personnel cost, N2 billion for overhead and N9.9 billion for capital expenditures.
He however said that the amount was grossly inadequate to fund the maintenance of the five National Stadia, mini sports and youth development centers across the country.
He therefore appealed to the committee to support the ministry to achieve its mandate in all spheres.
