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The Transition Monitoring Group, TMG, a coalition of over 400 grassroots organisations, has described as “ungodly” and “criminal”, the latest acquisition of new Toyota Land Cruiser automobiles by members of the Nigerian Senate, calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to deploy all his powers to stop the “hedonistic acquisition in these lean times”.
In a statement signed by its chairman, Ibrahim Zikirullahi, on Wednesday, the group said the senators circumvented extant procurement laws and the Fiscal Responsibility Act in acquiring the exotic vehicles.
The Senate has come under intense criticism following reports that the top lawmaking body has started taking delivery of 108 four-wheel drive Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles.
The Senate says it purchased 36 units of the vehicles at N36.5 million each, an amount many Nigerians say was inflated.
“The gluttonous manner in which less than 500 individuals are cornering the resources of a country where poverty and many other forms of privations are the order of the day, calls for concerted efforts among citizen groups, to reject the reign of these thieves garbed in legislative robes,” TMG said in a statement.
“TMG is incensed that at a time Nigerians in many states are grappling with the difficulties of living life without salaries, and the dire economic conditions biting so hard, it is provocative for Senators to be living in criminal opulence. Ironically, this is the same Senate led by a character currently standing trial over weighty allegations of false and anticipatory declaration of assets. It is the same institution that has been hijacked by shady figures, including their leader who has also been mentioned as one of those hiding suspicious assets in offshore tax haven, as revealed in the leaked Panama Papers. In defiance to extant procurement laws and the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the Senators have gone ahead to acquire the cars at prices that are twice the actual market value. It is barefaced stealing from the Nigerian people for the Senate to have paid N35.1 million for each of the Toyota Landcruiser purchased, while independent checks confirmed that the Toyota Land Cruiser SUV V6 2016 model is sold at N17 million.
