…Governor signs Supplementary Appropriation, two other laws
By Emma Una
CALABAR — Cross River State Governor, Senator Bassey Otu, on Wednesday signed the state’s 2026 Supplementary Appropriation Law, increasing the 2026 budget from N961,624,047,275.08 to N963,074,438,018.60.
Otu also signed the Cross River State Social Investment and Protection Law and the Health Quackery (Prohibition) Law.
The governor said the new laws would provide stronger institutional frameworks for improving the welfare of vulnerable residents, protecting citizens from unqualified healthcare practitioners and ensuring that government resources remained responsive to prevailing needs.
Speaking shortly after assenting to the bills, Otu expressed satisfaction with the quality and commitment of officials serving in his administration, despite what he described as negative narratives often generated on social media.
“Sometimes, when you go on social media, you see all manner of narratives. But what we are seeing here today is a clear demonstration that there are people who are working and who are committed to the progress of Cross River State,” he said.
Otu said the progress recorded by his administration reflected the capacity and dedication of those entrusted with public responsibilities, stressing that government must continue to review its policies and programmes in line with changing realities.
“We cannot continue to do things exactly the same way when circumstances have changed. Government must be dynamic enough to adjust, to review and to reposition its policies and programmes to meet the realities of the time,” he said.
The governor noted that the prevailing economic climate made it necessary for government to constantly align its development plans and financial resources with broader macroeconomic realities.
“We have to ensure that there is a balance between our development aspirations and the economic realities that confront us. That is why these adjustments and legal frameworks are important,” Otu said.
The Cross River State Social Investment and Protection Law provides a legal and institutional framework for establishing and managing social investment and protection programmes aimed at improving the living conditions of poor and vulnerable residents.
The law establishes the Cross River State Social Investment and Protection Agency and provides for its governing board, staff and financial provisions.
According to Otu, the legislation would provide government with a more coordinated platform to address poverty and vulnerability.
“Our responsibility as a government is to ensure that nobody is left behind. This law gives us a stronger institutional framework to reach the poor, the vulnerable and those who genuinely require social protection and empowerment,” he said.
Also signed into law was the Cross River State Health Quackery (Prohibition) Law, which seeks to eliminate unlicensed medical practice and strengthen the monitoring and regulation of healthcare facilities and practitioners across the state.
The law establishes a Health Monitoring Task Force and provides for the registration and monitoring of practitioners, while strengthening collaboration with law enforcement agencies to curb quackery.
Otu said protecting the lives and health of citizens must remain a major responsibility of government, stressing that unqualified persons had no place in the provision of professional healthcare services.
“We cannot compromise the health and safety of our people. Anyone who holds himself or herself out as a healthcare professional must be properly qualified, registered and competent to provide such services,” he said.
On the 2026 Supplementary Appropriation Law, Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem, said Governor Otu presented the bill on July 21, 2026, to amend the 2026 Appropriation Law and provide for matters not contemplated when the principal budget was passed.
Ayambem said the supplementary appropriation increased the state’s 2026 budget from N961,624,047,275.08 to N963,074,438,018.60.
“This supplementary appropriation is designed to address developments and needs that were not envisaged at the time the principal appropriation law was enacted,” the Speaker said.
He said the law would also enable the government to move funds from dormant budgetary positions to areas of greater need, while accommodating new revenue sources arising from increased Federation Allocation to the state.
“Where funds are lying dormant and there are critical areas requiring intervention, government must have the flexibility to make the necessary adjustments,” Ayambem said.
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