Budget: Buhari, Osinbajo to spend N3.3bn on foreign, local trips

President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo’s foreign and local trips in 2020 is expected to gulp about N3.327bn.

In the details of the 2020 Appropriation Bill that Buhari presented to a joint session of the National Assembly on Tuesday, the item was tagged Travel and Transport (General) under State House (President) and State House (Vice-President).

In the 2019 Budget, a total of N1.3bn was allocated for the foreign and local trips of the President and the Vice-President. While N1bn was allocated to the President, N301.03m was allocated to the Vice-President.

A breakdown of the N3.327bn allocated to travels for the two officials in 2020 shows that Buhari will spend N2.526bn on his trips while Osinbajo will spend N801m on his trips.

A further breakdown shows that Buhari’s foreign trips will gulp N1.751bn while N775.6m will be spent on his local trips for the year.

In the case of Osinbajo, his foreign trips will cost the nation N517m while his local trips will cost N283.97m.

The figures are outside the N182.25m allocated for travels and transport in the budget of the State House Headquarters.

Also in the bill, a total of N149m was allocated for foodstuffs and catering material supplies for both Buhari and Osinbajo.

While the President is expected to spend N98.3m on the item, N50.88m was budgeted for Osinbajo.

Apart from the N149m foodstuffs and catering material supplies bill, the two government officials will also spend N43.916m on refreshment and meal.

The President will spend N25.652m on the item while the Vice-President will spend N18.264m on the same item.

This is apart from the N135.668m budgeted for the same refreshment and meal in the budget of the State House Headquarters. For honorarium and sitting allowance, both of them will spend N184.438m.

While N164.176m was allocated to the President, N20.262m was allocated to the Vice-President.

N478.313m was allocated to the same honorarium and sitting allowance in the budget of State House Headquarters.

Still, under the budget of the State House headquarters, a whopping N4.062bn was allocated to what was tagged “annual routine maintenance of mechanical/electrical installations of the villa.” The project is said to be an ongoing one.

N526.234m was also allocated to what is called “phased replacement of vehicles, spares and tyres in the presidential, CVU security/police escort and State House operational fleets.” The project is also described as an ongoing project.