Lagos: Sanwo-Olu’s govt opens up on acquisition of N440m bulletproof SUVs

The Lagos State Public Procurement Agency has reacted to
reports that the Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu government spent the sum of
N440,750 million on the acquisition of a Bullet Proof Sport Utility vehicle.

The acquisition of the vehicle was revealed in publicized
details of contracts awarded in the second and third quarters of 2023.

Details of the procurement deals awarded by the Lagos State
government have continued to generate criticism in the public space after the
governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, in Lagos, Funso
Doherty, raised the alarm over the contracts.

Doherty, through his verified X handle, had tackled
Sanwo-Olu for spending N2 billion on the procurement of fans, rechargeable
lights and fridges, N18 million for chickens and N440,750 million on the
procurement of a brand new Lexus LX 600 Bullet Proof Sport Utility Vehicle all
for the office of Chief of Staff amid severe economic hardship Lagosians are
grappling with.

But, in a statement by Mr Fatai Onafowote, the Director
General, the Public Procurement Agency apologized for the lack of clarity and
details in the Lagos State Government procurement records posted on its
website.

Onafowote explained that the procurement of the N440,750
million bulletproof vehicle is in tandem with current realities.

The agency said, “Our attention has been drawn to recent
concerns regarding certain information posted on the Lagos State Public
Procurement Agency’s website. Acknowledging the misunderstandings arising from
a lack of clarity, we recognize the unintended misinterpretations.

“We regret the specific details, particularly concerning the
description of government dealings, may have inadvertently led to confusion,
impacting both government entities and corporate partners providing services to
the state.

“This arose largely from the lack of detailed descriptions
in the project information, which inadvertently led to confusion in the public
space,” the statement partly reads.

Recall that N5.09 billion allocated for a Presidential Yacht
and N160 billion for lawmakers’ SUVs were among controversial allocations that
trailed the N2.176 trillion Supplementary Budget before President Bola Ahmed
Tinubu signed it into law.