The Ndu Council Hall was jammed to capacity last Saturday 11 December 2021. The arrival of the SDO for Donga Mantung, Dr Nkwenti Simon Doh and entourage at 12:19 marked the beginning of serious business.
The Mayor for Ndu Council, the Gate Way Municipality, Alhadji Abdou Kanfon Borno took to the rostrum and heartily welcome everyone present. He said the draft budget witnessed almost a 25% drop from the previous year. He stressed the need for everyone to remain focused and made it clear that the drop was very intentional. His administration settled for a more realistic and qualitative, rather than quantitative budget. The Mayor described the budget as collective, introspective and focused; a budget balanced in revenue and expenditure.
Councillor Tata Emmanuel Bantar, chairman of the Financed Committee delivered a forensic and captivating presentation of the draft budget which stood at 900+m, a drop of 300+m compared to the previous budget. Recurrent revenue stood at 500+m while investment revenue stood at 400+m revenue. This is how the 900+m budget was arrived at. He said the draft budget was a projection of the three previous budgets of the Ndu Council excluding the 2021 budget which is still current and as such cannot be used as a reference.
The Finance Committee Chair reminded the 40 Councillors present that the draft budget shall be functioning within a transitional period; a new tax nomenclature and accounting system in perspective. There is therefore a possibility for the budget to be amended in the course of the year if such a need arise.
He ended his presentation with three proposals from the Finance Committee to the Councillors;
- Council should offer training to staff of the treasury and finance department
- the Ndu Council should broaden her tax base in collaboration with the technical ministeries
- revision of the Council development plan
The Secretary General for Ndu Council Mr Tansah... indicated that the draft budget has made provision for a budget head for the Council to acquire plots for;
- a Council plantation
- a Council cemetery
- green areas and gardens, to name but these
Other Chairpersons presented their Committee reports. This included Security, Education and Infrastructure and Transport committees. Proper diagnosis were made within their respective spheres and very sound recommendations forwarded to the Mayor and the administration.
The presentation of the Annual Investment Plan was a clear indication that Mayor Abdou Kanfon Borno and team has opted for a balanced development with significant projects earmarked all over the Municipality. The beautifully decorated Ndu Council Hall was as busy as a bee hive. The pertinence of human interest issues raised by Councillors and the penetrating responses from the Lord Mayor was an indication that the Ndu population are in safe hands.
All the 36 Councillors physically present and the 04 who could only make it through proxy unanimously voted in favour of the 2022 budget after serious scrutiny. They equally voted to authorize the Mayor to supplement the purchase of a Council vehicle by FEICOM, integrate 4 Council workers as permanent staffs, authorise the Mayor to sign conventions with national and international partners (as allowed for by the regulations in force) in the domain of agriculture and renewable energy (ie solar energy and bio gaz) and the adoption of the Council Annual Investment Plan.
During his intervention, the SDO for Donga Mantung Dr Nkwenti Simon Doh lorded the Executive of the Ndu Municipality for their offensive, effective and efficient lobbying mechanism. He enjoined them to do more and continue to change the face of this *Gate Way Municipality.* The SDO told the population of Ndu to capitalize on what will skyrocket her development endeavours and give her the opportunity to live in peace. He frowned at those motorbike riders who've continued to serve as a link between the population and the enemies of peace. He called on the Council to step in and regulate the sector so that quacks could be singled out and cause to face the full force of the law.
He cautioned teachers to stop playing the devil's advocate and work hard to reinstate education to its glorious days. He called on the Council to boast sports infrastructure in Ndu through The Ministry of Sports and Physical Education. Sports and culture, he said, can do a lot towards regaining normalcy and the Council and the traditional authorities are key actors. He hailed the Fon of Ntumbaw and his population for their bravery and patriotism demonstrated so far. He said the powers that be have taken note of such efforts.
The SDO said it was agreed at a meeting in Nkambe that all Councillors of Donga Mantung shall set the pace in the payment of Land Tax before it trickles down to the communities. This would be deducted from their stipends at the source. He told everyone present to collaborate on security matters and thank all the Councillors for their quality participation.
The Lord Mayor for Ndu Council saluted the SDO and his entourage for their participation touching recommendations. He thank the DO of Ndu, the Divisional Delegates present and their engineers for their constant support and collaboration. He thank the Manager of BAPCUL Credit Union, Ndu for his useful collaboration with the Council. He acknowledged the present of leaders of legalized political parties, notably the CPDM and the SDF and thank the Union leaders present. He called on everyone present to observe a minute of silence in Honour of the UNDP party representative in Ndu who passed away some few weeks ago.
The Mayor indicated that the markets are functioning far below capacity causing a drastic drop in revenue collection. He equally pointed out that CAC disburses very slowly causing a serious tow on the rate of execution of Council related works. He thank the Council staff for the wonderful collaboration despite the challenging circumstances under which they operate.
The budgetary session ended at 2:59 pm
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