Makinde presents N1.12trn final budget

…Allocates 60% to capital expenditure …Dismisses appointees’ resignations as meaningless By Adeola Badru Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Tuesday presented a proposed N1.12 trillion budget for the 2027 fiscal year to the State House of Assembly, describing it as the “Budget of Sustained Progress”, while dismissing the recent resignations of political appointees as inconsequential.

Makinde said the departure of some officials from his administration would not distract his government or affect its commitment to delivering its mandate. The governor made the remarks while presenting the 2027 Appropriation Bill, valued at N1,115,341,378,359.94, before lawmakers at the Parliament Building, Secretariat, Ibadan. Speaking against the backdrop of recent resignations by political appointees and other government officials, Makinde said he was keeping count of those who had left but insisted that their decisions were of no significance to his administration.

He also disclosed that one of the female officials who resigned had approached him with what he described as an impossible request, adding that she tendered her resignation after he declined to grant it. The presentation is particularly significant as the proposed estimates represent the final appropriation bill of Makinde’s administration, which is expected to complete its second term in 2027.

Under the proposal, capital expenditure accounts for N670.03 billion, representing 60.07 per cent of the total budget, while recurrent expenditure stands at N445.31 billion, or 39.93 per cent. Explaining the allocation, the governor said the proposed spending reflected his administration’s determination to sustain infrastructure development, consolidate existing achievements and strengthen the delivery of essential services across the state.

He said about 60 per cent of every N100 provided for in the budget would go into capital investments, stressing that infrastructure remained central to economic growth and long-term prosperity. Makinde, however, cautioned that physical infrastructure alone could not guarantee meaningful development without adequate investment in human resources and essential public services.

He said schools needed teachers, hospitals required healthcare professionals, medicines and equipment, while public institutions must be adequately staffed and equipped to function effectively. According to him, the proposed budget was also informed by consultations with stakeholders and residents across the state’s administrative and political zones, whose concerns and expectations shaped the government’s spending priorities.

The governor also used the occasion to advocate continuity in governance beyond the expiration of his tenure, unveiling what he called the Omituntun 3.0 agenda. He said the initiative was designed to prevent a reversal of the development trajectory established by his administration over the past seven and a half years after the 2027 governorship election.

Makinde said: “Over the last seven-plus years, we have worked towards sustaining the development trajectory of Oyo State. For the candidates we have recommended for continuity, we refer to this agenda as Omituntun 3.0. “While political parties may contest elections and some may emerge victorious while others lose, our overriding concern is to ensure that the development of the state does not suffer a setback.

“For the continued development of Oyo State in 2027 and beyond, I will place this agenda before the Governor, while the incoming administration will also be expected to take it forward from where we stop.” The proposed 2027 budget represents an increase over the original 2026 appropriation of N891.99 billion, which allocated N502.85 billion, representing 56.37 per cent, to capital expenditure and N389.14 billion, or 43.63 per cent, to recurrent spending.

However, following the approval of a N210 billion supplementary budget by the State House of Assembly in September 2026, the state’s total financial provision for the 2026 fiscal year rose to N1.102 trillion. Meanwhile, Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Adebo Edward Ogundoyin, described the presentation of the 2027 budget as a significant milestone in the state’s democratic and developmental journey, being the final budget cycle of the Makinde administration.

Ogundoyin said the occasion offered an opportunity to consolidate the achievements of the past seven and a half years, sustain ongoing programmes and strengthen the foundation for sustainable growth. He recalled that the first budget of the Omituntun 2.0 administration was presented before the Assembly on December 5, 2023, describing the latest presentation as another important moment in the relationship between the Executive and Legislative Arms of Government.

The Speaker said the state had witnessed considerable developments in infrastructure, education, healthcare, agriculture and security under the present administration. He listed investments in road construction an