Governor Sanwolu spends N9 billion to buy back up vehicles for lawmakers in 2024 budget
A review of the Lagos State 2024 Third Quarter (Q3) budget performance report has revealed that the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led state government in the Q3 alone spent the sum of N9 billion on buying “backup vehicles” for 40 members of the state House of Assembly.
The Q3 budget performance report showed the state’s expenditure ending September 30, 2024 and cumulative spending by the state from January to September, from the original and revised budget appropriation for the 2024 fiscal year.
According to the report, Governor Sanwo-Olu’s administration spent the N9billion in Q3 only to purchase backup utility buses and official vehicles for 40 members of the House of Assembly.
The report further revealed that between January and September, 2024, which covers First to Third Quarter of the year, Governor Sanwo-Olu’s government spent a total sum of N13,332,950,408.90, representing 32.8% of the State Assembly’s total budget, on purchasing backup vehicles for the 40 lawmakers in the state.
The budget performance report showed that the sum of N35,665,334,793.62 was allocated to the House of Assembly in the state’s original budget for purchase of backup vehicles and a total of N40,665,334,793.62 was allocated to the Assembly in the state’s 2024 revised budget.
According to the report, state’s total capital expenditure by project in the Q3 under review was N317,693,705,583.71, while total capital expenditure by project from January to September which covers Q1 to Q3 was N770,027,200,937.81.
Meanwhile, the report revealed that the Lagos State Agency for Mass Education has a rehabilitation/upgrading of vocational centres projects in Badagry and Sabo areas of the state and got a budgetary allocation of N191,346,648.85 in original and revised budget but the state government released no fund to the agency for the project from Q1-Q3.
Similarly, Lagos State University (LASU), according to the budget performance report, got N8,570,966,760.50 in original budget and N1,070,966,760.50 in revised budget for renovation/upgrading of university buildings which include Senate, library, faculty of management science, etc. but received zero funding from the state government between Q1 and Q3.
Also, the state-owned university got the sum of N824,661,345 in the state’s 2024 original and revised budget for the year 2023 accreditation exercise but no funds were released for exercise, according to the report.
In the same vein, the Lagos State College of Health Technology got a budgetary allocation of N200 million in the original and revised budget of the state for an accreditation programme but received zero funding from the state government in Q1, Q2 and Q3.
