The Labour Party, LP, has condemned the Federal Government’s plan to spend N57.6 billion on cars for the 360 members of the National Assembly. The party said that the plan showed a high level of insensitivity and wastefulness by the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
The National Chairman of LP, Julius Abure, made the call in a statement he signed on Tuesday. He said that the plan was unacceptable at a time when millions of Nigerians are living in poverty and hunger.
Abure said that the President had announced the plan in his maiden Independence Day broadcast to Nigerians on October 1, 2023. He said that the President claimed that the plan was meant to support vulnerable citizens who have been affected by the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and other challenges.
However, Abure said that the plan was a mockery of hardworking but underprivileged Nigerians. He said that each lawmaker would receive a car worth N160 million, while the minimum wage of N30,000 monthly was still not enough for workers to afford basic needs.
Abure also criticized the Federal Government for having a bloated Federal Executive Council of 48 cabinet ministers, each of whom was given three luxurious four-wheel drive vehicles on their first day in office. He said that these vehicles were paid for and fueled by taxpayers. He also said that the government was spending huge amounts of money on hundreds of presidential and ministerial aides, as well as numerous aides to the aides.
Abure wondered why the Federal Government would not boost the economy by patronizing local automobile manufacturing companies such as Innoson Motor in Anambra and Peugeot Automobiles in Kaduna. He said that this would save foreign exchange and create jobs for Nigerians.
Abure said that the Labour Party wanted to move the economy from consumption to production, putting Nigeria first. He urged the Federal Government to retrace its step and give priority to revamping the economy instead of its current obsession with luxury living.
He also called on the Labour Party legislators in the 10th Assembly to kick against this unnecessary wastage of resources in line with the ideology of the party which is social justice and equal opportunity for all. He said that Nigerians would hold them responsible if they fail to live above board or give proper account of their electoral investment.
He said that Nigerians are fed up with the status quo and they crave for a different leadership that must factor the interest of the suffering masses. He said that the poor must be allowed to breathe again in this country.
