Despite Nigeria’s ongoing economic challenges and rising inflation, the Federal Government has allocated N5 billion for extensive renovations to the official residence of Vice President Kashim Shettima in Lagos.
As part of the N2.17 trillion supplementary budget approved in November 2023, N3 billion was designated for refurbishing the vice president’s Lagos lodge, while another N2.5 billion was earmarked for upgrading his quarters at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.
A detailed analysis by The Punch using data from GovSpend, a platform that tracks public expenditure, uncovered that a total of N5,034,077,063 was spent on the Lagos project this year, executed in two phases. The first payment, amounting to N2,827,119,051, was made on May 31, 2024, to Denderi Investment Limited, a contracting firm. In September, two additional payments were authorized by the Office of the Chief of Staff: N726,748,686 for ongoing work and N1,480,209,326 for the second phase of the project.
In addition, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) announced plans in November 2023 to spend N15 billion on constructing a new official residence for the vice president in Abuja. This proposal, presented by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, was part of the FCTA’s N61.5 billion supplementary budget request submitted to the House of Representatives.
The significant expenditure has drawn criticism from civil society and advocacy groups. The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) condemned the spending, labeling it a misuse of public funds and a violation of both the Nigerian Constitution and international anti-corruption standards. Kolawole Oluwadare, Deputy Director of SERAP, stated, “Allocating N15 billion for a new residence for the vice president is an affront to public trust, especially when 30% of the N27.5 trillion 2024 budget (N8.25 trillion) is dedicated to debt servicing.”
Auwal Rafsanjani, Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, also criticized the government’s financial priorities, arguing that the allocations made over the past 16 months indicate a lack of commitment to reducing public spending.
Debo Adeniran, Chairman of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, added that unless constitutional reforms are implemented to address government spending, financial mismanagement will persist in Nigeria’s public sector.
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