Leaders of Nigeria’s National Assembly—Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker Abbas Tajudeen, and their deputies, Barau Jibrin and Ben Kalu, are set to receive N10 billion for housing and furniture in 2024.
This money is part of a larger N288 billion extra budget that President Tinubu sent to lawmakers in September, which they approved within five days, Premium Times reported.
The specific budget line is called “Renting and Furnishing of Presiding Officers of the National Assembly.”
This spending comes from Nyesom Wike, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister, who has already funded other expensive housing projects, including a N21 billion home for Vice President Kashim Shettima and N25 billion worth of houses for 40 judges.
These expenses are happening while many Nigerians face serious economic hardship. Recently, Nigerians died in stampedes while trying to get food. The government continues to spend on luxury items while telling citizens to be financially careful.
In the past, these officials lived in government quarters in the Apo area of Abuja, but those buildings were sold during President Obasanjo’s time.
Since 2011, the government has been renting homes for these officials. Currently, Senate President Akpabio lives in a rented place in Maitama, while the speaker lives in Guzape District.
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The spending raises several important questions. Why is the FCT paying for this when the National Assembly has its own N344 billion budget? Why spend N10 billion on rent when there are unfinished housing projects for these same officials? There are incomplete houses meant for these officials in the Three-Arms Zone – why not finish those instead?
To understand the scale of this spending, consider that the government plans to spend N11.5 billion to build 20,000 houses for regular citizens. The National Housing Program for the whole country got N5.3 billion. House members recently donated N704 million (half their salaries) to help poor Nigerians. The N10 billion for these four officials is almost twice the entire national housing budget.
When journalists tried to get answers about this spending, the FCT Ministry ignored their official information request, and the Senate and House of Reps spokespersons didn’t provide answers. This follows a pattern where the FCT’s budgets aren’t made public.
This spending has raised concerns about the government’s priorities and transparency in using public funds, especially during difficult economic times for most Nigerians.
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