Government officials would have their travel budgets cut in half, according to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s announcement last week.
In a briefing with State House reporters, Ajuri Ngelale, the president’s special adviser on media and publicity, revealed that the president will travel with a staff of twenty, while the vice president will travel with a staff of just five.
When the president goes on a local excursion, he will be escorted by 25 people, the vice president by 15, and the first lady by 10.
On Monday, during Governor Hope Uzodinma’s inauguration for a second term in office in Imo State, Tinubu faced his first test following the news.
The president reportedly had a large entourage—well over the 25 he had previously declared for domestic travels.
The president’s plan was bound to run into opposition from public officials and other politicians, according to some observers.
Speaking on the matter, Murkthar Suleiman, a communication strategist based in Abuja, stated that vested interests among government employees who may seek to inflate data constituted a significant obstacle that Tinubu would have to overcome.
The president should eliminate several government agencies and ministries, according to Suleiman, who also suggested that the funds be used for infrastructure development.
“The major interest Tinubu is going to face is that of vested interest; there are people who have vested interest in this thing,” he told sarewahausa.
If the policies are sound but the politics are flawed, it will be hard for them to have any impact, as I have often stated that successful governance is the result of both good policies and good politics.
His position as Commander-in-Chief doesn’t exclude him from the persuasion of those around him.
I don’t know how he plans to convince those special interests that cutting the cost of government is preferable than cutting spending on our current initiatives. No need to feel sorry for him; after all, he did say he applied for the position.
The key issue is the vested interest of government employees; we are aware that the high expense of running an agency is not attributable to the actual job or upkeep of the agency, but rather to the padding of budgets.
How then can we deal with something that is literally a block away from corruption?
“Improving people’s standard of life and creating jobs are the direct results of reducing the cost of government, which frees up funds to be directed elsewhere.
We need to put our emotions aside and look at things rationally.
When we talk about reducing the cost of governance, what we really mean is eliminating wasteful spending.
To transport the president and his security detail, for instance, would require spending nearly half a billion dollars on fuel for his plane and other associated expenses.
Some MDAs need the president’s budget cut. Some of the president’s recent appointees in the cultural and artistic sectors of the economy, for example, are merely restating the status quo.
When you see how many entertainment agencies are all doing the same thing, you start to wonder how they got started. Among the things that should go are these because we do not require them and because they do not contribute to the advancement of our nation.
“I hope they dismantle the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs because it’s a money laundering scheme. The funds that were allocated to that ministry should be sent to the president’s office so that he can reroute them to other reasonble endeavors.”
The senior pastor of the Awaiting the Second Coming of Christ Ministry, Adewale Giwa, has urged President Buhari to hear the cries of the Nigerian people and cut spending on government.
Giwa claims that Tinubu has to start lowering government spending by limiting funding for the National Assembly and state governors.
At this trying time, no one should suggest that a leader cut the budget for government services.
Spending N200 million in 2024 on animal feed for Aso Rock was a waste of money.
For the sake of Nigerians, I hope the president will swiftly lower the expense of governance; he seems like a leader who listens.
“The president’s decision to allocate N200 million to feed animals is deeply troubling for the population, especially considering the acute economic crisis our country is currently experiencing.
From the National Assembly on down to the governors, we must begin to reduce the expense of governance.
“Tinubu went backwards; upon taking office, he ought to have announced the opening of borders that his predecessor had closed. Instead, he delayed.
He told SAREWAHAUSA, “Introducing price control and get things functioning is out of it; selling petroleum at the rate of N650 per litre.”
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