The government of president Buhari rode upon the change mantra to gain the confidence and the votes of people during the 2015 general election to emerge as the captain of the Nigeria ship. To the voters, change meant a deviation from the Nigerian norm of rulership which is defined by massive corruption and insensitivity to plights of citizens. That was just what they wanted.
Almost two years after Buhari came into power, things have, on the surface, remained the way were before he came into power. The only positive so far is imminent victory in the fight against Boko Haram. The Nigerian army has recorded unprecedented success against the dreaded Boko Haram terror group in what has been the main highlight of Buhari’s tenure. But while Boko Haram has ceased to be Nigeria’s top security problem, others have sprang up in the form of the ethnoreligious crisis in southern Kaduna and homicidal rampages by Fulani cattle rustlers, which have claimed more lives in the last one year.
Prior to his emergence, the president promised to tackle corruption and waste of public funds. But after about two years of “tackling”, no “corrupt government official” has suffered any injury from Buhari’s “sliding tackle”. And as for the wastage of public funds, Buhari has done more than play his part in giving life to the same thing he promised to fight against. For one, the 2016 budget was filled with shady repetitive items. Some of the items are being repeated in the 2017 budget which is on the floor of the Senate. One of the repeated items is “catering and kitchen equipment” which will gulp the sum of 100 million naira.
The tales of Nigeria in the past twenty months bear stark resemblance to our dark past as a country, in terms of policies and realities; it appears this government is no different from the past, and here is why.
There is a proposal before the senate to ratify a sum of hundred million naira for “caterings and equipment” of Buhari’s kitchen. In addition to that, one hundred and fourteen million naira is budgeted for foodstuff and catering supplies. That’s about two hundred and fifteen million naira budgeted for food and kitchen equipment for the president’s house in a country where a greater percentage of the citizens live below half a dollar, at 490 exchange rate, daily. This is in a country where scores of children rescued from the Boko Haram group are left to die of malnutrition at various Internally Displaced Persons’ camps. But there is a president who says change must begin with the citizens while he is thinking about refining his kitchen. What exactly is in Buhari’s kitchen that 100 million naira should be budgeted in a year?
In the 2015 budget, jointly executed by the Jonathan and Buhari administration, a sum of 237. 4 million naira was allocated for kitchen items. In a budget made by the Buhari administration in 2016, the sum of 88.1 million naira was quoted for the same items. It might also interest you to know that the budgeted amount of money which is merely for “Payment of outstanding balance on acquired canteen/kitchen equipment for a banquet hall, auditorium and defence house” is exclusive of food stuff and cooking fuel.
Aside that, the State House in 2017 also plans to spend 123.2 million naira on “food stuff and catering materials supplies,” with the president having a separate budget from the vice president for the same items.
For the president, 114.97 million naira is proposed for foodstuff and catering materials, while the vice president quoted 53.50 million naira for the same items. For such amount to be quoted for kitchen equipment and food by an administration that preaches repentance and penitence, it is nothing but destructive wastage.
What happened to items bought with the previously budgeted amounts in 2015 and 2016? Wherein lies the much talked about Change? In removing petrol subsidy? In imposing and increasing stamp duties on savings accounts or Nigerians?
Shall we begin to talk about 250 million naira can do to the lives of hundreds of dying children at IDP camps? How about investing such an amount of money in the educational sector which still receives less than the stipulated 26 percent of budgetary allocation by UNESCO?
The millions of naira public officials get as allowances, which remains shrouded in secrecy should cover their expenses for food and kitchen equipment. This destructive tradition of budgeting millions of naira for kitchen equipment when there are better things that could be done with such money needs to stop. If President Buhari were to own up to his campaign promises, he would not be going too far by removing such a meaningless line of expenditure from the budget. After all, change is about deviating from destructive norms, and establishing a people-oriented government that will go on to become the standard for subsequent governments. I do not think Mr President understands this yet.
