Gbajabiamila Debunks N10bn Allocation to Renovate Residence

Femi Gbajabiamila, President Bola Tinubu’s Chief of Staff, has debunked circulating rumours that the 2024 budget includes a N10 billion allocation for the refurbishment of his official house.

In a statement made public on Wednesday, Gbajabiamila said that the rumours about this budgetary provision are untrue and inaccurate.

The former Speaker of the House of Representatives clarified that he lives in his home in Abuja and that the 2024 Appropriations Bill does not include any funding for the renovation of any residence for the President’s Chief of Staff.

Previous reports had stated that the President’s Chief of Staff was expected to spend N10 billion for the reconstruction and repair of his official residence in Abuja.

He claims that the amount incorrectly attributed to his office in the report was used to provide cars for the Presidency’s employees, update the information management and communications infrastructure in the Presidency to meet contemporary standards, and renovate the Presidential Quarters in Dodan Barracks and the Vice President’s Lodge in Lagos.

He wrote: “I have seen social media commentary regarding the 2024 Appropriation Bill, particularly the provisions under the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President. Owing to the erroneous nature of these reports, it has become necessary to clarify that there is no provision in the 2024 Appropriation Bill for the renovation of any residence for the Chief of Staff to the President. I live in my private residence.

“The sums mischievously quoted by online bloggers and fake news merchants are for renovating the Presidential Quarters in Dodan Barracks and the Vice President’s Lodge in Lagos, to overhaul the information management and communications facilities in the Presidency to meet modern standards and to provide vehicles for the staff of the Presidency.

“The sums proposed for these projects are clearly stated in the budget proposal and bear no resemblance to the deceptive online commentary.

“This administration welcomes and encourages scrutiny of government expenditure; this is why the Budget proposal is publicly available. However, healthy public debate about government actions requires us to be responsible with our utterances and engage based on facts rather than insinuations and falsehoods.”