Osun State Budgets more for New Cars in 2022 than Capital Allocation to 13 LGAs

A Dataphyte review of Osun State’s 2022 budget has shown the state plans to spend N995 million on brand new vehicles for the governor’s office. Gboyega Oyetola-led government had spent N536.942 million (between January and June 2021) for the purchase of brand new cars for governor’s office in 2021. Although N629 million was the amount originally budgeted for the expenditure in 2021.

Osun State 2022 Capital Budget by Project

If the 2022 budget performs optimally up to 100%, the state would have spent N1.5 billion on vehicles for the governor’s office between January 2021 and December 2022. If the budget has a performance of 85% as with the 2021 budget, the Office of the Governor would spend N1.4 billion on new cars.

Nothing Wrong with New Cars but What is the Opportunity Cost of N995 Million 

Osun State has consistently lamented poor revenue and the government’s high investment in official vehicles for the governor’s office might be a poor representation of the state’s needs or its financial fortunes.

Opportunity Cost of N995 Million New Vehicle Budget

Pension Burden

The government recently announced a payment of N927 million for pensioners, less than the money budgeted for new vehicles, and insufficient to take care of the state’s debt to pensioners. These pensioners have served in the state’s civil service as administrators, accountants, teachers and if the state repurposes its “new cars” budget provision to offset its pensioner’s burdens; it has a wider reaching multiplier effect on the state’s senior citizens and will make a dent in the state’s N50 billion pension burden. 

Infrastructural Investment

The state budgeted N2.063 billion for the ‘Road Maintenance Agency’, that would mean that the state is using an equivalent of 49% of the budget for road maintenance to buy new vehicles for the governors’ office in 2022.

Based on Osun’s 2022 budget, N804,550 funds would build a block of three classrooms would at the rate of . If the N995 million set aside for governors’ office vehicles were repurposed to improve educational infrastructures such as building classrooms, at the rate in the budget, it could build 1,236 more classrooms in 2022. 

According to reports, Osun State schools have dilapidated structures, forcing students to learn under hard conditions. So more classrooms are actually a genuine need in the state.

In the 2022 budget, the state planned to sink nine (9) boreholes in nine federal constituencies of the state at the rate of N19.7 million. Should the state government redirect the funds for new vehicles to drilling boreholes, it will cover 450 different locations in the state.

Again, water is an actual need, as Osun State residents have lamented epileptic water supply. Some residents said they have not had water since 2014.

Local Government Administration

The money allocated for new vehicles is more than the capital expenditure allocation for 13 Local Government Development Areas in the state.

The money allocated for new vehicles is more than the capital expenditure allocation for 13 Local Government Development Areas in the state.

2020 Capital Budget Allocation to Local Government Areas in Osun State Government

The N995 Million is higher than the capital allocation for five LGAs in Osun West, four LGAs in Osun East and four more LGAs in Osun Central for the 2022 fiscal year. Local governments across all the states have consistently failed to deliver on their responsibilities and funding, is one of its major challenges.

Osun Government Defends Vehicles Budget, Say Expenditure meant ‘for the people’

Osun State Commissioner for Information, Funke Egbemode, told Dataphyte that the amount budgeted for vehicles would in no way affect financial provisions for other needs in the state.

“You know we have a prudent governor and a very slim purse, we would not buy or budget for what we do not need. When you see such figures, it does not in any way hinder other needs. Nothing that we do not need would be budgeted for”.

She further stated that the state government is very focused, and all that is done is to put the people in front.

“If you see anything in the budget, it is about the people,” Funke Egbemode said.

The information commissioner also said that there are many government offices with no vehicles and the general services Office of the Governor will manage the fund for purchase of vehicles, and it does not mean the vehicles are to be in the governor’s convoy.

There is a need to re-prioritise state budgeting- Expert

A fiscal transparency and accountability expert, Ijeoma Okereke, while commenting on the development, noted that frivolous spending of money by government breeds corruption. She also expressed concerns that this kind of spending is difficult to track and likely ends up in the pockets of a few people.

She said the state could have spent such funds on critical infrastructure and projects that would directly affect the lives of Osun State residents. Ijeoma listed some projects, such as education, health, and other critical needs.

While criticizing the expenditure, she asked that advocacies at the sub-national level should be strengthened. “It will surprise you the level of financial anomalies that happen at the state level. We need to strengthen advocacies and demand for accountability,” she noted.