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Stakeholders want adequate enlightenment on constituency projects

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17 Aug 2021 8:52 AM GMT
Stakeholders want adequate enlightenment on constituency projects
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Some electorate in Kaduna North Senatorial District, Kaduna State, have stressed the need for members of the public to be adequately sensitised on constituency projects. The electorate made the call in Zaria on Tuesday at a town hall meeting organised by a group, Connected Development (CODE) over the N191 million worth of constituency projects in […]

Some electorate in Kaduna North Senatorial District, Kaduna State, have stressed the need for members of the public to be adequately sensitised on constituency projects.

The electorate made the call in Zaria on Tuesday at a town hall meeting organised by a group, Connected Development (CODE) over the N191 million worth of constituency projects in the zone.

They identified poor information and awareness on constituency projects as one of the major challenges affecting the tracking and monitoring of constituency projects sited in their communities.

A participant, Mr Mohammed Gambo, Chairman, School-Based Management Committee (SBMC), Sabon Gari Local Government Area, said that most communities did not know much about the constituency projects.

Gambo noted that government should make all information on constituency projects public, with all details including locations and projects cost, to enable citizens to track and monitor them.

“Beyond making the project’s information public, there should be massive awareness creation so that people will know which project will be implemented in their communities to ensure proper monitoring.”

Mr Bala Jibrin, Chairman, SBMC, Makarfi Local Government Area, called for the availability of the Bill of Quantity to communities to enable them track the execution of constituency projects effectively.

Jibrin commended the group for organising the town hall meeting to sensitise citizens on constituency projects, to ensure their participation in the implementation of such projects.

A member of a Community Monitoring Team in Ikara Local Government Area, Mr Monday Nathan, said that most of the constituency projects were being implemented without consulting the communities.

According to him, there is no way citizens will track and monitor constituency projects when people do not know anything about the projects due to lack of information.

The Acting Education Secretary, Makarfi Local Government Education Authority, Mr Saidu Kasimu, noted that a school was constructed at Unguwan Geri community, adding that no one knew who funded the project.

“We just noticed a project was being executed, but we do not know if it is a State Universal Basic Education Board, Universal Basic Education Commission or a constituency project,” he said.

Responding, Mr Tara Jeremiah, Planning Officer, Monitoring and Evaluation Department, Kaduna State Planning and Budget Commission, said that the state government was doing all it could to make project information available to the public.

Jeremiah noted that the government had made a commitment under the Open Government Partnership to be transparent and accountable to the citizens.

He said that several platforms such as toll-free call line and mobile application among others were provided for people to track the implementation of projects and make complaints where necessary.

Earlier, CODE’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Hamzat Lawal, noted that the meeting was organised to draw the attention of elected representatives at the state and the National Assembly on the need to carry people along in project design and implementation.

Lawal, represented by Mrs Lucy Abagi, CODE’s Senior Programme Manager, said the goal was for community members to monitor the implementation of constituency projects.

He noted that the meeting was organised under the Deepening Citizens’ Interest in Government Spending and Addressing Accompanying Corrupt Practices projects, supported by MacArthur Foundation.

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