Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff to the President, responded to circulating reports concerning allocations within the 2024 Appropriation Bill, particularly regarding the alleged renovation of his official residence.
Reports indicated that a section of the N27.7 trillion budget presented by President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly was designated for renovating the Chief of Staff’s residence.
These reports highlighted a significant increase in the budget allocated to the Office of the Chief of Staff for 2024, amounting to a 97.5% rise from the N517.95 million it received in 2023.
But in a reaction he posted on his official X handle, the Chief of Staff described the reports as erroneous, insisting that there is no provision in the 2024 Appropriation Bill “for the renovation of any residence for the Chief of Staff to the President”.
Insisting that “I live in my private residence”, he added, “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.”
