N37bn NASS Renovation Bill: Final straw of APC’s corruption ― PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday described the over N37 billion claimed to be for the renovation of the National Assembly complex as an unpardonable rip-off plot and the last straw of the brazen corruption that pervaded the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration.

In a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, the Party stated that it was indefensible for the Buhari Presidency to propose a whopping N37 billion for renovation work on the National Assembly complex, which was built at the cost of N7 billion naira.

The statement reads, “our party insists that the over 500 per cent padding of the original construction cost is completely insupportable even with the prevailing costs and exchange rate regime, a development that has already spurred public outcry and apprehensions of plots to divert the fund for political interests of certain APC leaders.

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“The over-bloated renovation figure is therefore not only sacrilegious but also further confirms that the APC-led administration is overtly corrupt and only out to steal, drain and divert our national resources for selfish purposes of certain individuals in the present administration”.

The Party insisted that such corruption was unacceptable in a nation confronted by the alarming economic downturn, extreme poverty, hunger, decayed infrastructure and security challenges.

It, however, noted that the N37 billion was embedded in the budget of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) as approved by President’s Buhari, which left the burden of explanation on Mr President’s doorsteps.

The party, therefore, charged President Buhari to demonstrate the integrity of his approval by immediately publishing a detailed breakdown of the renovation project in line with his recent directives to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

It challenged President Buhari to immediately publish the details of the individual renovation lines, amount and reason for each payment as well as the contractors, beneficiaries and payment patterns for Nigerians to see if indeed the money has not been detailed for diversion.

The party charged the National Assembly to stand on the side of the people by using its statutory legislative instruments to thoroughly scrutinise the FCDA budget and eliminate all embedded padding designed to fleece our nation.