Amid Economic Hardship, See What Wike Wants To Do With N15bn

Amid Economic Hardship, See What Wike Wants To Do With N15bn

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is set to spend N15 billion on the construction of a new residence for the Vice President, despite the nation’s challenging economic conditions.

Minister of the FCT, Nysom Wike, revealed this while defending the N61.5 billion 2023 supplementary budget of the FCT before the House of Representatives Committee on FCT.

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President Bola Tinubu had transmitted a N67 billion FCT supplementary budget to the National Assembly for approval the day before.

This new residence project is planned despite the recent allocation of N2.5 billion for the renovation of the current VP’s residence in the federal government’s supplementary budget.

Wike informed lawmakers that the construction of the new residence for the Vice President was initially approved in 2010 by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at the cost of N7 billion, but the project was abandoned.

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The current administration has decided to resume the project, and the contractor has revised the cost to N15 billion.

To commence the project, Wike proposes to spend N5 billion in the 2023 FCT supplementary budget, titled “Design and Construction of Vice President’s Residence at the cost of N5 billion.”

When questioned about the substantial spending, Wike stated that the project aims to provide the Vice President with a fitting residence.

He emphasized that the current residence, built by the military (Aguda House), was deemed inadequate, leading to the decision to construct a more fitting residence in 2010.

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Despite public criticisms, Wike defended the project, stating that it was not a renovation but an entirely new project approved in 2010. The government aims to complete it and have it commissioned by May 2024.

In addition to the allocation for the VP’s residence renovation in the federal government’s supplementary budget, there is an additional N3 billion for the renovation of the VP’s residence in Lagos State. The supplementary budget also allocates billions for the purchase of cars for the Villa and the Office of the First Lady.

The spending plan has generated negative reactions from Nigerians, who criticize the government for prioritizing luxury amid the economic challenges faced by citizens.

Apart from the residence project, Wike is proposing to spend N2.8 billion on publicity for the FCTA in the supplementary budget, emphasizing that the funds will be used to publish vital information that would generate revenue for the territory.

The estimates submitted by the minister outline various revenue sources, including the Paris Club refund, IPPIS/PAYE tax liabilities, special intervention fund, internally generated revenue, and the infrastructure support fund. The proposed budget includes N12.9 billion for overhead costs and N48.6 billion as the capital component.

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