The administration of President Bola Tinubu has urged Nigerians to endure economic hardship, citing the need for sacrifices to drive the country’s progress.
However, this plea comes at a time when the government is facing criticism for its lavish spending on foreign trips.
According to reports, the government has spent a staggering N83 billion on foreign and local trips in just one year.
This includes N7 billion spent on foreign trips alone, with President Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, and other government officials embarking on numerous trips abroad.
The Special Adviser to the President on Economic Affairs, Tope Fasua, argued that economic recovery requires endurance and long-term commitment to policies that prioritize local production.
“For a country like Nigeria to actually get to where it wants to get to, there is a bit of pain that you have to endure,” Fasua said.
Despite the government’s call for endurance, many Nigerians are outraged by the administration’s extravagant spending on foreign trips. The trips have yielded little to no tangible benefits for the country, further straining an already struggling economy.
Some of the most notable trips include:
- COP29 Climate Conference: Nigeria had the largest delegation of over 1,000 people, raising questions about the necessity of such a bloated attendance.
- President Tinubu’s Trips: The president alone recorded 29 trips to 18 countries, spending 124 days abroad.
- Vice President Shettima’s Trips: Shettima made 12 trips to 10 nations.
The breakdown of the expenditure includes:
- International Travel and Transport (Training): N12.2 billion
- International Travel, Transport, and Others: N24.19 billion
- Local Travel and Transport (Training): N15.8 billion
- Local Travel and Transport (Others): N31.2 billion
The total expenditure for both local and international travel amounts to a staggering N83 billion in one year.
