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Lawmakers Budget Fresh N30bn For N’Assembly Renovation

Published

2 years ago

January 8, 2024

Lawmakers have budgeted an additional N30bn for the renovation of the National Assembly Complex in the 2024 Appropriation Bill.

The N30bn earmarked for the renovation of the building was part of the N344.85bn budgeted for the National Assembly after they raised their allocations from N197.93bn.

The N344.85bn, signed by President Bola Tinubu on January 1, is the highest ever allocated to the legislature.

The additional N30bn brings to N60bn the amount being spent on the renovation of the National Assembly complex.

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who is also the President of the National Assembly, had on June 30, 2023, declared that Tinubu would in December, last year inaugurate the N30bn different ongoing projects at the National Assembly.

Akpabio said, “The entire complex of the National Assembly is like a construction site due to ongoing general renovation work and fresh projects which would, on completion, be inaugurated by President Bola Tinubu in December this year (2023).”

The renovation was initially billed to be completed and delivered in August 2022 but the delivery date was later moved to January 2023 and then December 2023.

As of January 2024, the renovation of the National Assembly Complex is yet to be completed with skeletal work ongoing on the premises.

Our correspondent, who was at the site on Saturday, observed that the contractor, Visible Construction Company, was still at work.

An official of the construction firm, who spoke to our correspondent anonymously, said, “People keep blaming us for not finishing the project but those with the money have refused to release money to us.

“How are we expected to finish the work without money? If money is released to our company, the project will be done in no time.”

Earlier during an oversight visit by the Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory, the site engineer, Tajudeen Olanipekun, blamed “fluctuations in the value of naira to the United States dollar for the delay.”

“This has hampered the importation of required materials and equipment, in addition to the need for more funds from the FCDA,” he said.

However, the Head, Public Relations, Federal Capital Development Agency, Richard Nduul, in June disclosed that N19bn had been paid to the construction company.

He said, “I would like to refer you to a recent press briefing by the Executive Secretary, Engr. Shehu Hadi Ahmad, just about three weeks ago, where disclosed that so far about N19bn has been expended out of the sum of N30bn being the cost of the contract awarded in 2021 to Messrs Visible Construction Nigeria Limited with a completion date of August 2023.

“This project when completed, will bring the Complex to the status of a world-class parliamentary building that will ensure both the comfort, convenience and functionality of the complex,” Nduul added.

However, when our correspondent called Nduul to get an update on how much had been expended on the project, he said he was on sick leave.

He said, “Please call back on Monday so that I can get the records from the concerned department.”

In the same vein, our reporter reached out to the site engineer, Olanipekun for comment on the amount paid, but he refused to pick up his calls and even blocked our correspondent from reaching him.

He had also refused to reply to the text messages sent to him.

Related Topics:Lawmakers Senate Senators

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JUST IN: Court Orders IGP To Arrest Mahmood Yakubu, Ex-INEC Chairman

Published

3 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

Despite his exit as the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, has again ordered the Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, to arrest the former INEC chairman, Prof Mahmoud Yakubu, for an offence relating to contempt of court.

The Court order came a few hours after Yakubu left office as the INEC chairman.

The Action Alliance, AA, had instituted a case before the court challenging INEC and its former chairman, Prof Yakubu, over their non-compliance with the judgment of the Court delivered by Justice Funmilola Demi-Ajayi in suit number FHC/OS/CS/194/2024.

In the said judgment, the court ordered INEC to put the names of the National Chairman of the Action Alliance, Adekunle Rufai Omoaje, and other members of the party’s National Executive Committee, NEC, on the INEC portal.

The Court also held that the names of all the state chairmen of the party be uploaded on the INEC portal.

The court held that the elective convention of the party held on the 7th of October, 2023 which produced Omoaje as the national chairman of the party and other NEC members of the party was authentic as it was properly monitored and supervised by officials of INEC in accordance with the party’s constitution and the electoral acts.

However, INEC claimed to have complied with the court judgment, but the party disagreed with the commission, as the name of Omoaje was yet to be uploaded on the commission’s website despite the orders of the Court.

Although the names of the state chairmen of the party under the leadership of Omoaje and those of the NEC members are already on the INEC portal, Omoaje’s name is yet to be uploaded as of press time, a development that the court frowned at.

The court order obtained by our correspondent dated 7th October, 2025, and signed by Mr O.M. Kilani on behalf of the Court Registrar reads in part, “it is hereby ordered that the Inspector General of Police shall cause the arrest and shall charge the defendant/judgment debtors for contempt and committal proceedings within seven days of this ruling.”

The court also awarded a cost of #100,000 against the judgment creditors.

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Lagos Closes Adeniji Adele–CMS Lane For Six Weeks Of Repairs

Published

4 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

The Lagos State Government has announced a partial closure of the Adeniji Adele Interchange Junction to CMS for six weeks to allow for rehabilitation works by the Federal Government.

According to a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, the repair works will run daily between 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., starting Sunday, October 12, and ending Sunday, November 23, 2025.

Osiyemi explained that only one lane of the road will be closed during the period, while the remaining lanes will remain open to traffic to minimize disruptions.

He assured motorists that traffic management officers will be stationed along the corridor to ensure smooth vehicular movement and reduce inconvenience during the rehabilitation.

“Motorists are implored to be patient, as the lane diversion is part of the traffic management plan for the rehabilitation of the road by the Federal Ministry of Works,” the commissioner said.

He also urged drivers to comply with the directives of traffic officials on duty to ensure safety and efficient traffic flow throughout the repair period.

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JUST IN: Tinted Permit Enforcement Placed On Hold Due To Court Order – Police

Published

4 hours ago

October 8, 2025

Editor

The Nigeria Police Force said on Wednesday that the enforcement of the vehicle tinted glass permit has been suspended following a court order halting the exercise.

Spokesperson for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command, SP Josephine Adeh, disclosed this during an interview on Africa Independent Television, AIT.

She said the decision to halt the enforcement came after the police officially received the court order.

Adeh said, “Information reaching me from the office of the PRO is that the order has been received and the enforcement of the tinted permit is now on hold pending the court’s verdict”.

Disclosing that the directive to suspend enforcement would remain in place pending the outcome of the ongoing legal process, Adeh said, “We are waiting for the verdict. We are not against the courts, and we will continue to wait until we get a verdict”.

Speaking on public concerns about the purpose of the tinted glass regulation, Adeh explained that it was introduced for security reasons, noting that some criminal activities had been carried out using vehicles with darkened windows.

“The law was not made by us. We are enforcers. The policy was purely security-driven. Some criminals were using tinted vehicles to commit offences, making it difficult for law enforcement to identify suspects,” she said.

She dismissed claims that the policy was designed for financial gain, noting that all payments related to tinted permits are made directly into the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account (TSA), not to the police.