BudgiT Archives - Leading Reporters

The National Assembly is embroiled in a fresh Budget Padding Scandal after an investigation by BudgIT has revealed that the proposed Budget for the Federal College of Horticultural Technology, Dadin-Kowa, Gombe State, was inflated from N368 million to N42 Billion.

BudgIT Foundation, a Nigerian civic tech organization committed to promoting transparency and fostering citizen engagement for institutional reforms, announced that there were significant irregularities in the 2024 budget process.

According to BudgIT, the college, situated in Northeastern Nigeria, initially submitted a proposed budget of ₦368 million for the 2024 fiscal year. However, the National Assembly approved an inflated allocation of ₦42.7 billion, resulting in an extraordinary discrepancy of ₦42.332 billion—an increase of over 5,000%.

This revelation was highlighted in a BudgIT social media statement on Tuesday: “From ₦368 million to ₦42.7 billion!!! For the 2024 fiscal year, the Federal College of Horticulture, Dadin-Kowa, Gombe, initially proposed ₦368 million. However, the National Assembly approved ₦42.7 billion. A difference of ₦42 billion!!! @nassnigeria, kindly do the right thing and uphold integrity during the 2025 budget review.”

BudgIT further disclosed that the additional funds were allocated to 12 projects unrelated to the college’s mandate. These projects, many located outside the institution’s jurisdiction, included the supply and installation of solar streetlights, boreholes, motorcycles, and other community infrastructure, most of which are in states far removed from Gombe.

Among the inserted projects were:

Solar streetlights in constituencies across Osun, Edo, Bauchi, Nasarawa, Oyo, Lagos, and Kogi States (₦1.6 billion).
Classroom construction, boreholes, and transformer installations in federal constituencies nationwide (₦1.5 billion).
Solar-powered boreholes in Kebbi, Oyo, Katsina, Benue, Akwa Ibom, and Edo States (₦1 billion).
Provision of mini-buses for human capital development in Saala Orile, Ibatefin, and Orelope (₦1 billion).
Construction and furnishing of community schools in Maun and Mayigi (₦1 billion).
Solar-powered streetlights in rural farming communities of K. Kusar/Shani federal constituency (₦600 million).
Solar streetlights for communities in Bassa, Kogi State (₦500 million).
Distribution of Bajaj tricycles for unemployed individuals in Lagos (₦500 million).
Construction of solar-powered boreholes in various locations in Sokoto and Bauchi states (N495,926,518)
Construction of classrooms in various locations in Kano State (N495,926,518)
Supply of assorted food items for distribution as palliative across Maiduguri metropolitan federal constituency, Borno State (N200,000,000).

Folarin Kehinde, Abuja

The Program Officer, Paradigm Initiative, Ihueze Nwobilor has urged the federal government to immediately pass the data protection bill to ensure data accountability and security.

Nwobilor while speaking in Abuja on Thursday at the 5th edition of the New Media, Citizens and Governance conference tagged ‘Protecting Digital Rights in Closing Spaces’ government should Pass the Data Protection Bill to and laws to prosecute offenders.

Nwobilor explained that one of the greatest challenges that Nigerians are facing today is if ones privacy is bridged, we don’t have the laws even when you catch those that bridged that privacy, we don’t have enabling laws to prosecute them.

“What we are talking about is to put the legal framework that can hold every player in the area of data and security of data accountable and one way to do this is to hold the legislature and everyone in data privacy bill accountable”.

Meanwhile, Nwobilor expressed worry that the government is gradually closing the civic space through excessive regulations that stiffens peoples voices.

“We have seen that government is also bringing actions that are making these spaces we are seeing that they are opening now to be closing through censorship, regulating and over regulating the media space”.

“We are not against regulating what happens on social media”.

“But when regulations becomes excessive, so you find out that it is tantamount to stiffening people’s voices”.

However, he charged that even citizens said they have their rights there is a limitation to the right and should not be abused.

Iyanuoluwa Bolarinwa speaking on behalf of budgiT stated that the conference aim at understanding the intricacies of new media, government and the country how Nigerians are using these platforms to democratize their voices.

Bolarinwa added that the question everybody needs to answer is to know how much data assets we have and how we can bridge the gap between citizens and the government and to make sure that government in the real sense represent the citizens and is able to give answers to citizens when questions are asked.

BudgiT

National Assembly inflates Nigerian College’s Budget from N368 million to N42 Billion – BudgiT

Pass Data Protection Bill Now, Paradigm Initiative Task FG