?There could be mistakes on some items - Gov Sanwo-Olu reacts to outrageous allocations in state budget

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Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said no administration is immune from mistakes.

The governor said this is why he reacted to the outrage of Nigerians after the procurement record released by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency showed that some exorbitant amounts were allocated for some items in the state budget.

Democratic Action Congress governorship candidate in Lagos, Funso Doherty, has written an open letter to the state government asking why such sums of money were allocated. State procurement records showed that the governor approved N7.5 million to replace liquid fragrances in his office and N3 billion to purchase rechargeable fans for the office of his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat. Other contracts awarded by the state Public Procurement Agency (PPA) in the 2nd and 3rd quarters of 2023 included the approval of over N440 million for the purchase of a new Lexus LX 600 Bulletproof Sports Utility Vehicle for use in the Cabinet pool of the Chief of Staff. The Office of the Chief of Staff also received N18.5 million for the supply and distribution of 2,000 Noiler chickens in local government areas and districts in the state.

The governor, in a statement by his spokesperson, Gboyega Akosile, said the controversy was unnecessary, stressing that the State had nothing to hide in its public expenditure.

“Over the weekend, we saw on social media how some people can politically reverse all our attempts to be responsible, transparent and committed to good governance. We have no problems with any individual. In fact, we recognize that this is how it should be. We appreciate the fact that people look at us and say you need to do well in this area.

We have no problem with the author of the open letter; in short, we like him and thank him. In fact, if we are seen as a transparent and responsible government, we should not be afraid of criticism. But only when the criticism is malicious and misrepresents the truth will there be a problem.

Officials from Lagos State came to show that there may be errors in some items. There was a specific issue where an item was supposed to be N2 million but was written as N2 billion. There are many discrepancies that have been corrected by the PPA. We will not discuss problems with anyone on social media. All we are committed to is continuous service to the people of Lagos.”

Sanwo-Olu said Lagos kept open books for checks and balances, stressing that the state judiciously appropriated funds for projects and services that benefited residents. He assured that his government will continue to publish its spending and keep it open to public scrutiny.

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Source: www.lindaikejisblog.com

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