2024 HURIWA Lecture: Onwubiko queries FG’s spendings amidst worsening hardship

National Coordinator, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, Emmanuel Onwubiko, has called on President Bola Tinubu to reduce the cost of governance, especially at a time Nigerians are dying of hunger.

Onwubiko spoke at the 2024 National Human Rights Lecture in Abuja on Thursday.

He noted that public officers, especially the elected ones and their appointees, owed the citizens the lawful duties to implement measures to guarantee the security of lives and property.

The HURIWA boss noted that any nation that the government was incapable of guaranteeing the right to life of the citizens was not worthy to be addressed as a sovereign.

Onwubiko appealed to president Tinubu to drastically cut down on the costs of governance.

According to him, it is disheartening for the government to embark on “the acquisition of a multi-billion Naira mansion of over N20 billion for the Vice President in these times that over 133 million households are absolutely poor and going through the rough and tumbles of multidimensional poverty.

“Why build such a massive mansion for the Vice president when the country is the poverty capital of the world, thus overthrowing India that is one of the most populated nations globally?

“Is it that the Vice president has no place to stay or was he staying at the Wuse market to necessitate that sort of a mad rush to spend N20 billion to set up a mansion for him?

“What about the housing assets forfeited to government by convicted thieves of public funds?

“Why did the government not set up a living quarters for the VP in one of these forfeited assets if the accommodation at the Villa for the VP is no longer enough?

“Also, why is the government and the National Assembly creating many more agencies of government and pilling up expenses for running these agencies when the government should be merging the existing agencies to cut costs of running government?

“Why buy presidential jet at a massive costs to the public till even when there is a presidential fleet with over 9 aeroplanes?

“So, there is the need for downsizing government and drastically reducing costs so the resources are channelled towards providing infrastructures, healthcare and for creating the enabling environment for the private sector to thrive and for millions of youths to get skills and capacity trainings that would help set them up as wealth creators and not job seekers.

“It is time to say enough is enough and to wage a lawful war against all traces of corruption, impunity and insecurity so as to save democracy.”