…lists over N300bn in government’s excessive spending
By Sanni Abdullahi
Emir of Kano, Mohammed Sanusi II, has publicly disagreed with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s assertion that he inherited a “dilapidated Nigeria” from former President Muhammadu Buhari, arguing that the scale of government spending under the current administration contradicts that narrative.
In a strongly worded message released Sunday, the former Central Bank of Nigeria governor said the President’s description of the country he inherited does not align with budgetary allocations and expenditure patterns recorded since May 2023.
“How can a president that claimed to have inherited a dilapidated Nigeria be spending public funds extravagantly as if you inherited a rich and prosperous country,” Sanusi asked in the statement.
The Emir then listed several projects and allocations he described as “extravagant spendings” under the Tinubu government, totaling well over N300 billion.
Sanusi questioned the N21 billion earmarked to renovate the Vice President’s residence in Abuja. He also cited N4 billion for the renovation of Dodan Barracks in Lagos and another N3 billion for Aguda House, the Vice President’s lodge in Lagos.
“Those figures alone tell a story different from a government managing the ruins of a broken economy,” he said.
The Emir further referenced N5 billion budgeted for the Presidential fleet of cars and another N5 billion for a Presidential yacht. He also listed N225 billion reportedly spent on what he called the “so-called Presidential jet”.
“You cannot claim poverty at the point of inheritance and then commit hundreds of billions to comfort and mobility within two years,” Sanusi stated.
The Kano Emir directed part of his criticism at the legislature, pointing to N70 billion approved for National Assembly members to purchase Sports Utility Vehicles. According to him, each SUV cost about N160 million and was allocated to Senators and House of Representatives members specifically.
He also faulted the speed with which a 300% salary increase for judges was passed. “That increment was speedily passed by insensitive and irresponsible Senators,” Sanusi said.
On lawmakers’ monthly pay, he claimed: “Every Senator is paid 21 million naira monthly. House of Representatives are earning 13.5 million monthly. All the increment was done by your government.”
Sanusi raised questions about N5 billion given to the Presidential Tax Reforms Committee headed by Taiwo Oyedele, noting the committee has “less than twenty people with nothing to show for it”. He also criticized the N1.5 billion allocated for cars for the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, adding that “the First Lady office is not recognised by our constitution”.
The Emir listed N90 billion spent on the 2024 Hajj pilgrimage and said “billions of naira was budgeted for your trips including the Vice President Kashim Shettima to the detriment of the citizens”.
He also accused the administration of awarding the N15 trillion Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project illegally to Gilbert Chagoury, a Lebanese businessman. Sanusi alleged that Chagoury “was repatriated back to his country by former President Obasanjo”.
“You have the largest ministers ever in the history of Nigeria,” he added, without providing a specific figure for the cabinet size.
Sanusi’s statement directly challenges one of President Tinubu’s recurring explanations for current economic hardship. Since taking office in May 2023, Tinubu has repeatedly said his government inherited a weak economy, depleted foreign reserves, and structural deficits from the Buhari administration.
The Emir argued that the level of spending on non-essential items undermines that position. “The optics matter. You cannot ask Nigerians to tighten their belts while the budget shows the opposite at the top,” he said.
Sanusi, who has in various fora spoken extensively on fiscal discipline, has become one of the most prominent traditional rulers to openly critique the Tinubu administration’s spending priorities.
As of press time, the Presidency had not issued an official response to Sanusi’s claims. Previous statements from government officials have defended capital projects and allocations as necessary investments in governance, security, and infrastructure.
The N21 billion Vice President’s residence renovation and National Assembly SUV purchases have already sparked public debate and protests in Abuja and Lagos earlier this year, with civil society groups calling for cuts in the cost of governance.
Sanusi concluded his message by urging the government to align its rhetoric with its budget. “If Nigeria is truly dilapidated, then the budget must reflect emergency repairs, not luxury upgrades,” he said.
The Emir’s intervention adds to growing pressure on the Tinubu administration to justify high-profile expenditures amid inflation, subsidy removal, and calls for austerity from the public.
It could be recalled that HRM Muhammadu Sanusi II was reinstated as the 16th Emir of Kano on 23 May, 2024 by the the current Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf after the Kano Emirates Council Law 2019 was repealed.
Aminu Ado Bayero had become Emir in March 2020 after Sanusi was deposed by then-Governor Ganduje. Bayero was dethroned in May 2024 when Sanusi was reinstated.
