A civil society group, The Brain Builder’s Youth Development Initiative, has criticised the Kwara State Government and the Kwara State House of Assembly over their failure to make the proposed 2026 budget publicly accessible.
The group, in a statement signed by its Global Director Olasupo Abideen, and a copy made available to newsmen on Wednesday in Ilorin, described the situation as a major setback for transparency and participatory governance in the state.
While acknowledging that the proposed budget has eventually been released to the public since the inception of the current administration, the group noted that the process has been consistently delayed over the past three years.
“We are concerned that despite repeated commitments by the present administration to promote open governance, citizens are still being denied timely access to one of the most critical public documents in the state,” Abideen stated.
According to BBYDI, civil society organisations and citizens have often been compelled to write formal letters and send repeated emails before the budget proposal is made available, a practice it described as unacceptable in a democratic system.
“A public budget is not a favour that should be granted upon request. It is the right of the people,” the organisation maintained.
It added that the continued failure to proactively publish the proposed budget raises serious questions about the government’s commitment to transparency and accountability.
The group also faulted the Kwara State House of Assembly for allowing the budget process to progress without ensuring that the proposal is placed in the public domain.
“Lawmakers have a constitutional duty to promote openness and safeguard the interests of citizens.
“The absence of public access to the proposed budget before its passage undermines meaningful scrutiny and increases the risk of waste, duplication, and inefficient allocation of public funds,” Abideen warned.
The organisation, therefore, called on the Kwara State Government to immediately publish the proposed 2026 budget on all official platforms.
It also urged the House of Assembly to suspend further legislative action on the budget until the document is made fully accessible to the public.
BBYDI further encouraged residents of Kwara State, the media and development partners, to demand openness in the budgeting process, insisting that transparency is the foundation of accountable and people-centred governance.
The organisation reaffirmed its commitment to sustained advocacy, stating that it would continue to engage relevant stakeholders until transparency and fiscal responsibility become consistent practices in the state.
Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, on Monday, December 22, 2025, presented a proposed budget of N644,004,816,893.00 to the Kwara State House of Assembly.
This fiscal plan, tagged the “Budget of Consolidation and Sustained Growth,” allocates about 65.98 per cent to capital expenditure and 34.02 per cent to recurrent spending, with priorities including infrastructure completion, security enhancement, workers’ welfare and social protection measures.
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