By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership has berated the President Bola Tinubu administration for allegedly earmarking N6.36bn for the renovation and rehabilitation of the President’s residential quarters and that of Vice President Kashim Shettima and some of their aides, in the proposed 2025 budgetary allocations.
CACOL maintained that renovating the Presidential quarters is like washing plates which are already clean, saying it amounts to wastefulness.
Recall that the Federal Government had proposed a total of N6,364,181,224bn for the renovation and rehabilitation of the residential quarters of the President, Vice President, and some of their aides in the 2025 budget proposal.
According to the proposed budget, N765m will be used for the renovation of the Vice President’s quarters and guest house.
The renovation of the President’s quarters at the State House will also cost N6.39m, while the renovation of security quarters, auditorium, gymnasium and presidential aides’ quarters will cost N49m and others gulping N6.36bn in total.
In the N2.17tn supplementary budget passed in November 2023, the Federal Government budgeted N3bn for the renovation of the vice president’s official residence in Lagos State and another N2.5bn for the renovation of his official residence located within the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.
Tinubu also inaugurated the N21bn official residence of Shettima in Abuja in 2024.
However, commenting on the matter, the Executive Director of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, said there was no need for renovation of the buildings because those who used the property earlier carried out renovation almost yearly.
“Unfortunately, they (government officials) are living in immoral opulence. They don’t care about ravaging security issues, or inadequate education, and training for essential workers, which leads us into the jeopardy that’s happening,” he stated.
Adeniran added, “This government is wasteful and doesn’t set its priorities right. Its priority is self-serving. There are so many ostentatious expenditures that they’ve made that are not relevant to the needs of the people. These expenditures are a waste of scarce resources. Nigeria would have been a better country without this wastefulness. They overspent on inanities and underspent on essentials.”
He maintained that the wasteful spending was why Nigerians lived in poverty.
Also speaking on the matter, the Executive Director Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Auwal Rafsanjani, expressed dissatisfaction with the renovation plans, saying they were unnecessary.
According to Rafsanjan, such an allocation appears disconnected from the realities faced by the average Nigerian, going by the fragile state of the Nigerian economy, characterised by rising inflation, escalating poverty, and widespread economic hardship.
He said, “The concerns of Nigerians, particularly with regard to unemployment, inflation, and increasing poverty levels, must be taken seriously by government leaders, and this budget allocation could be perceived as an unjustifiable use of public funds, particularly when urgent infrastructure needs in education, health, and poverty alleviation remain largely unmet.
“It is worth noting that the renovation of these quarters was already undertaken in 2023, raising legitimate questions about the necessity of further expenditure on the same project within a short period.
“Nigerians are rightfully asking whether these funds could not be more effectively redirected towards addressing more pressing needs, such as enhancing the healthcare system, improving public education, and providing support for vulnerable communities.”
Rafsanjani stated that such large allocations benefitted a small fraction of the population, while large sections of the country continued to struggle with necessities.
