The administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has not only become the butt of derisive jokes but also gain notoriety for reckless spending, a development, many analysts have argued, is responsible for the rising cost of governance and drain on the economy, writes Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf
JOLOMI ADOLPHOUS, no doubt has come a long way. From a humble background, as a poor farmer’s lad from the backstreets of Sagbama, in Bayelsa, young Adolp, as he was fondly called by friends, through dint of hard work and Mother luck, rose above the limitations of his environment to become a success story many parents desire for their wards.
But no sooner did he become a success than he began to subject other members of his household, especially the less fortunate ones, to untold hardship, a development, which soon pitched him against the rest of the community. In no time, he was banished from the community as his people could no longer tolerate his excesses.
The above anecdote, if you may, shares a verisimilitude with what fate possibly awaits President Goodluck Jonathan. From being a “shoeless” young lad, like Jolomi, he was able to rise above all the limitations and obstacles and literally walk his way to success. Today, he doesn’t just have shoes and other ensembles but have tasted the good life and have the indulgences of the privileged few and so much more!
Expectedly, his image is anything but impressive in the court of public opinion, and what better evidence than the jeers and ribald jokes being bandied about in pubs, markets, offices and anywhere two or three are gathered, as discerning members of the public continue to raise their voices above the din to analyse what is largely described as Jonathan’s “Presidential gaffes” in recent times.
High cost of governance under Jonathan
President Jonathan is largely touted as running an extravagant government judging by the amount devoted to feeding, refreshments, entertainments and other incidental expenses like trips, etal.
The near-N1 billion allocated for the same purpose in the 2012 budget generated a swirl of controversy big enough to force the Presidency to order a reduction.
In the 2013 budget, the President has tried to come down a bit with allocation, particularly in the area of expenses on food, refreshments and welfare for the State House, the Vice-President and other ministries.
The total allocation to the Presidency in the 2013 budget proposal is N35,545,673,132, with total personnel cost put at N11,476,593,929. Total overhead is N11,569,079,204, with total recurrent put at N23,045,673,132 while total capital stands at N12,500,000,000. Out of this, the Presidency budgeted N327,154,931 for refreshment and meals and another N406,738,969 to purchase foodstuff, just as Vice-President Namadi Sambo would spend N112, 500,000 to purchase food for the 2013 fiscal year, another N123,405,499 on refreshment and N7,020,750 to purchase cooking gas. When added, the total for the Presidency meals is not too far from the N1 billion budget of 2012.
The Presidency has, however, always argued that the allocation include budget for meals and drinks served during the different ceremonies and events at the State House and feeding of cabinet ministers during the weekly cabinet meetings. Even in spite of the boast about improved electricity supply across the country, the Presidency, it appears, is not ready to take chances on the possibility of outage.
Hence in 2013, it proposed to spend N72, 510,832 to fuel its generators while it will also spend N553, 056,411 for honorarium and sitting allowance.s
Soaring cost of foreign trips
Just like other areas, President Jonathan spent billions of naira on foreign trips in 2012 despite his earlier promise to cut down these expenses, even as he is planning on spending a whopping N2.6billion next year on foreign trips.
The Nation can authoritatively report that the President together with his entourage have spent nothing less that N3.354billion since 2010 on foreign trips.
The President within the first 11 months of this year flew out at least 20 times.
In September alone, the President travelled out of the country four times, including his trips to Addis Ababa.
Within the first nine months when he first became President, he spent N970.891million on foreign travels.
The budget did not, however, state explicitly the figures for his travels. But investigations have shown that President Jonathan spent N1.7billion on foreign trips this year alone.
In 2012, N684.74million was budgeted for foreign travels alone.
During his presidency, the President was reported to have flown to different destinations in Africa, Europe, Asia, North America, and South America.
In 2011, he visited numerous countries including, United States, France, Uganda, Australia, Ghana, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, and Ethiopia among others.
The President travels with his entourage, top aides, and officials of the Presidential Villa are usual faces on such trips; ministries applicable to the purpose of his overseas trips also send delegations.
In recent times the president travels with two members of the National Assembly (one from each chamber), depending on the purpose of his visit.
Sahara reporters had in June claimed that Jonathan travelled to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for the United Nations’ Earth Summit with 116 government officials.
Although the President rebuffed the figures but he never gave out the exact figure.
Jonathan had said in a national broadcast in January, “I have directed that overseas travels by all political office-holders, including the President, should be reduced to the barest minimum. The size of delegations on foreign trips will also be drastically reduced; only trips that are absolutely necessary will be approved.”
Like Jonathan, like Sambo
Like his principal, Vice President Namadi Sambo is also not left out of the spending spree.
His new residence being constructed is generating much controversy over its cost.
The Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on Thursday refused to approve the additional N9bn expenditure budgeted for the Vice President Sambo’s residence under construction.
Refusing the request, the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Smart Adeyemi said such amount of money to be spent on a house is not worth it, especially now that many Nigerians are hungry and cannot afford a meal.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Adamu Ismail, told the lawmakers that the contract was awarded in 2009 for N7bn.
Adding, he said the additional N9bn needed was for furniture, fencing, two more protocol guesthouses, a banquet hall and security gadgets.
While explaining, Ismail said, the proposal was not contained in the original plan submitted to the contractor, Julius Berger Nig. Ltd.
Adeyemi said, “The National Assembly is not going to appropriate additional N9billion for the project, especially at a period in this country when people cannot get three square meals.
“The N9billion is far more than the original cost of the project.”
The Vice Chairman of the Committee, Senator Domingo Obende, on the other hand, called on the Executive Secretary to present the added scope of work for which the fund is vital to the committee for inspection.
Ismail said the proposed N9billion was cut down to N6billion by the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP).
He said, “We have worked out the details and passed to BPP for consideration. They (BPP) have sent it back to us with their observation.
“We requested for N9billion but now it came to about N 6billion.”
To Adeyemi, the N14 billion is indefensible, “in view of present realities.”
He said, “Now you are asking us to approve a total sum of about N14 billion and this is just the Vice President’s residence.
“N14billion, to me, is huge for the Vice President’s house. If you are even talking of N10 billion that would be understandable. “The reality is that N14 billion is indefensible and that is our submission. In Nigeria, there are still many people with empty stomach. So, we have to look at budgeting in relation to the needs of the people.”
Presently, Vice President Sambo resides at the Aguda House, a building officially designated as Presidential guesthouses.
During the Yar’Adua presidency, President Goodluck Jonathan also stayed in the Aguda House when he was Vice President.
Vice President Atiku Abubakar stayed in the house, which the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) currently occupies.
The FCT budget for this year also includes a N300 million for the design and construction of houses for Senate President and his Deputy, David Mark and Ike Ekweremadu; as well as Speaker of the House, Aminu Tambuwal and Emeka Ihedioha, his deputy.
This is despite the fact that David Mark and Dimeji Bankole were sold their old official residences at a giveaway price, only two years ago.
Senator Bala Mohamed’s devotion to the well-being of President Goodluck Jonathan had in the past not been doubted. As Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT with concurrent duty as landlord to the president, he had rustled not a few feathers when he named a new layout in the federal capital after President Jonathan.
Justifying the construction of the new hall, Senator Mohammed had said: “We noticed that it (existing hall) is inconveniencing; it is not in tandem with what is outside the country. Even smaller countries have better Banquet Halls near their Presidential residences.”
As at press time, telephone calls and sms sent to Presidential Spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, to enable him react to the issue did not elicit any response as he neither returned calls nor sms.
Criticisms
But as would be expected, a barrage of criticisms have continued to greet decisions announced by the government with many calling for the head of the president.
A cross-section of those who spoke with The Nation had very harsh words for the Jonathan-led administration. Constitutional lawyer, Professor Itse Sagay described the proposed amount for a banquet hall at the villa as a wasteful project.
According to him “It is absolutely shocking to hear that our leadership are hell-bent short-changing the rest of us. I am shocked because right now, the impression we have is that the government is short of money. And you know there is this big debate going on now on whether the civil service should be reduced so that there will be more money for development. So, I would have thought if we have N2.2 billion, we will use it either for roads, hospitals, universities or other developmental projects rather than a banquet hall. In my view, it is a wasteful project for now given our tight financial circumstances.”
“One would have expected that the government would devote such funds into building refineries, but instead it chooses to build guest-house to host itself and its guests.
“Jonathan, no doubt is running an extravagant government like other successive regimes. We are just persuading Jonathan to move in a different direction.”
Human rights activist and lawyer, Bamidele Aturu, also flayed the decision of the administration, saying “It is unbelievable really that the Federal Government would be talking about spending such a huge amount of money on a hall or enjoyment for Owambe kind of partying, hall at this time.
“I think it is quite insensitive, it does not demonstrate that the government wants Nigerians to believe that the economy is not buoyant and that the government cares about the welfare of the majority of Nigerians given the immediate needs that Nigerians suffer in other areas of life, given the general decay of infrastructure, the lack of good roads, the fact that our educational system has collapsed and the miserable wages that workers are paid.
Dr. Chris Onalo, Registrar/Chief Executive, Institute of Credit Administration (ICA), is hard pressed to believe that the country’s leadership would as much as mouth such demands.
“For those of us in the credit management profession, we’re really worried about the level of transparency in public and private sectors spending. When you look at the huge spending, it does not reflect on the generation of income. ‘I just think this country is ruled by certain forces which don’t seem to marry reality with euphoria,” he said.
Expatiating, he said: “It is unthinkable that our leaders would even think of putting up a massive edifice for the VP or the President, in a place where the people are wallowing in abject poverty. Corruption, I daresay, has eaten deep into the fabric of our economy and one only hopes and prays that things will not get out of hand before our leaders learn their lessons.
“I think it is high time faith-based organisations rallied round to drive away this madness. They need to really wake up. We need to create jobs. We need industrial revolution. We need to build an empire which the entire black race would be proud of.”
For Professor Sherifdeen Tella, of the Department of Economics, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Agowoye, Ogun State, what the government has done amounts to “gross insensitivity.”
Speaking with The Nation over the weekend, the don said, “Most nations of the world are striving to drive capital expenditure above recurrent expenditure.”
He, however, regretted that the reverse was the case in Nigeria. “Even part of the money that was voted for capital projects, part of it is what is being proposed for the banquet hall and other irrelevancies. It shows that the government is not a serious government at all.
According to Prof. Tella, “Whereas the government should be thinking of devoting money into research and development, making the environment conducive for learning and all that, like a typical Owambe government, it is just thinking of hosting itself and people outside the country. It is laughable, “he lamented, adding: “One can only pray that the legislators will prevail on the government to rescind the decision because it is what the lawmakers pass that would become law.”
