Mr. President, your persistent claim that you inherited a dilapidated Nigeria from your predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, rings hollow when weighed against the extravagant choices of your administration. Your government’s spending patterns not only contradict this narrative but expose a widening gulf between the suffering of citizens and the excesses of those in power.
A Catalogue of Extravagance Amid National Hardship
Under your watch, wasteful and unjustifiable expenditures have multiplied:
₦21 billion set aside to renovate the Vice President’s residence.
₦70 billion handed to National Assembly members for luxury SUVs pegged at ₦160 million each.
₦4 billion for Dodan Barracks renovation and another ₦3 billion for Aguda House.
₦5 billion allocated to the Presidential Tax Reforms Committee, fewer than 20 members, with no visible output.
₦1.5 billion spent on vehicles for the First Lady, an office unknown to the Constitution.
A 300% salary increase for judges, passed at lightning speed by an indifferent Senate.
₦5 billion for the presidential fleet and another ₦5 billion for a presidential yacht.
An alleged ₦225 billion committed to procuring a new presidential jet.
₦90 billion allocated for the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage.
Billions squandered on foreign trips for you and the Vice President.
Lawmakers earning obscene monthly packages, ranging ₦21 million for senators and ₦13.5 million for House members.
A ₦15 trillion Lagos–Calabar Coastal Road dubiously awarded to your long-time associate, Gilbert Chagoury.
These are not the decisions of a government battling a bankrupt nation. They are the hallmarks of a leadership insulated from reality and swinging in the sufferings of the poor.
A Government Bloated Beyond human reasons
You preside over the largest cabinet in Nigerian history. Rather than pruning costs as recommended by the Oronsaye Report, you created an entirely bougous Ministries and outrageous government agencies, another bureaucratic monument to waste. If Nigeria is truly as dilapidated as you claim, how are these luxuries justified?
The Missing Fuel Subsidy Savings
You removed fuel subsidy without any cushioning measures. Nigerians endured the shock with the promise that savings would be reinvested in infrastructure and social welfare. To date, there has been no clarity on how much was saved or where it went. What is the government hiding? Transparency is not optional, it is owed.
The Harsh Realities Nigerians Now Face
While the ruling class drowns in opulence, ordinary Nigerians are left gasping:
Cost of governance is rising, not shrinking.
Electricity tariffs have been hiked ruthlessly.
Education and healthcare have slipped beyond the reach of most citizens.
Food prices and basic commodities have become unbearable.
Insecurity festers, killings and kidnappings proliferate.
The economy is in freefall, unemployment is soaring.
Corruption is normalized, nepotism sits proudly at the table of governance.
Leaders’ allowances and security votes remain unacceptable while citizens languish without any form of direct support.
Your slogan of Renewed Hope has mutated into renewed frustration, despair, hunger, poverty and above all deception.
A Leadership Detached From the Nation’s Pain
Mr. President, the lifestyles of you and your officials belie every claim of national hardship. The reckless opulence displayed by ministers, governors, service chiefs, and heads of agencies contrasts sharply with the destitution of the populace. Leaders are getting richer; the people are getting crushed.
Your own dramatic personal transformation, physically, mentally, and financially, stands in haunting contrast to the deteriorating quality of life for Nigerians. It is not symbolic progress; it is a harsh indictment.
A Call for Urgent Reversal
This is only a glimpse of the insensitivity and reckless governance Nigerians are enduring. The trajectory of your administration is not sustainable. It must be reversed, immediately and decisively, if Nigeria is to reclaim any semblance of stability, dignity, or hope.
Solomon Dalung, LLM,LLB,LB
Igbarman Otarok & Garkuwa Arewa
Voice of Voiceless Majority
igbarman@gmail.com
