Still On Cross River Finance Commissioner, Asuquo Ekpenyong Jnr – Lest, We Forget

TRACKING_____Several stakeholders have been calling out the young Cross River State Finance Commissioner, Asuquo Ekpenyong Jnr. after Cross River and eleven other States missed out of the World Bank-assisted States Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) program.

Cross River and the other States failed to secure the SFTAS benefits because they failed to publish their annual appropriation law and audited financial statements virtually within the time frame stipulated by the SFTAS Program Operation Manual (POM).

The Federal Government had disbursed the sum of N43.42 billion (about $120.6 million) to 24 eligible states because of their achievements under SFTAS program.

There are Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) derived from the country’s 22-point Fiscal Sustainability Plan and the 14 Open Government Partnership (OGP) commitments which aim to strengthen fiscal transparency, accountability and sustainable development across the 36 States of the federation.

The DLIs which eligible States recorded to receive the grants include achieving improved financial reporting and budget reliability; increased openness and citizens’ engagement in the budget process; improved cash management, reduced revenue leakages through the implementation of Treasury Single Account (TSA), strengthened Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) collection; biometric registration and Bank Verification Number (BVN) used to reduce fraudulent activities around the payroll, all of which Cross River, under the Finance Commissioner Asuquo Ekpenyong, failed woefully to meet.

But that shouldn’t come as a surprise for those who have been following events in the State since the inception of this administration. Such pundits should have been aware of the opaque and haphazard way our finances have been managed under Ayade and Asuquo and how we have been diverted from a tradition of established inclusive and transparent budgeting processes to copying and pasting bogus budget figures that really mean nothing. An unserious, cocky, know-it-all team that doesn’t want the public to get a glimpse of their mismanagement are on the driving seat and the results are only commensurate with the quality of persons in office.

This same State Finance Commissioner, Asuquo Ekpenyong Jnr. is so unperturbed about State matters that he had turned down appearing on a radio program; on Hit 95.9 FM Calabar to discuss the 2017 State Budget and opted for singing karaoke in his father’s, Channels View Hotel that same evening. That is how unimportant he takes State affairs. So aloof, cocky and feeling that he doesn’t owe us any explanations.

Mr. Ekpenyong had being invited to join the Special Adviser Budget, Mr. Moses Onoh; the then Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Honorable Eteng Jones; Development Expert, Pamela Braide and the Chief Economic Adviser to Governor Ben Ayade, Mr. Francis Ntamu on December 3, 2017 but “Did not return calls nor acknowledge text messages to him”. While all others turned up.

That same evening, the father’s hotel, Channels View posted a short Instagram video of him and Inyanya singing Cool and the Gang’s 1981 hit song “Get Down On It” and drinking whiskey in their karaoke night.