Separate contracts for the vehicles have already been awarded by the leadership of the Senate and the House of Representatives, working closely with the management of the National Assembly.
In addition to the bulletproof vehicles being purchased for the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and his deputy, Barau Jibrin, at a cost of N320 million each, the Senate will soon take delivery of 107 Toyota Prado (2023 model) vehicles, at a contract price of approximately N160 million for each senator.
In addition to two armored cars for the Speaker and the deputy speaker, the House of Representatives is about to distribute 358 units of the Toyota Land Cruiser 2023 model in total.
Toyota Land Cruisers would cost between N135 million and N145 million on the open market in 2023.
Outrageous criticism of the development for what critics dubbed a "arrogant display of insensitivity to people's feelings in times of biting and harsh economic situations" has been expressed.
The Guardian has reliable information that a coalition of civil society organizations may participate in a civil demonstration against the National Assembly as resentment grows.
While the Senate has remained silent despite information that contractors handling the procurement are demanding an upward review of the contract sums for the vehicles due to the significant devaluation suffered by the naira after the contract, the House of Representatives has since acknowledged that it had placed orders for such vehicles for the official use of its members.
Yemi Adaramodu, the Senate's spokesperson, merely indicated that she would call back when contacted by phone and WhatsApp messages. He never did, though.
Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate, who could also be reached on the phone through Eseme Eyiboh, his special assistant on media relations, entirely disregarded our reporters' calls and texts.
Akin Rotimi, a spokesman for the House of Representatives, attempted to clarify the situation by stating that "the vehicles to be allocated to the offices of members are utility operational vehicles tied to their oversight functions in the discharge of their duties in the standing committees. They are not gifts to honorable members given as personal automobiles.
"The vehicles shall remain the property of the National Assembly for the duration of the 10th assembly (2023 to 2027)," he stated. Members may have the choice to pay the outstanding value of the vehicles to government coffers before they can become their property before the 10th Assembly's term ends in 2027, should the extant assets deboarding policy of the government still be in place; otherwise, they remain the National Assembly's property.
The stark disparity between the cost to offer the automobiles in 2019 and the current pricing is of concern to those opposed to the purchase of the vehicles.
In contrast to the roughly N160 million being spent on each legislator, the Senate spent N50 million in 2019 on each car.
According to research on the particular brand of the cars, each one includes a four-wheel drive system, center locking, a terrain camera vision, and numerous other off-road characteristics.
Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, a 10-speaker audio system, a 10-way power driver's seat, an 8-way power passenger seat, heated and ventilated front seats, quad-zone temperature control, wireless charging, and a head-up display are other amenities, the auto dealer said our correspondent.
In the meantime, civil society organizations and members of the public have denounced the purchase due to the enormous sums involved and the process' apparent opacity.
Oby Ezekwesili, a former minister of education, was one of the many detractors who criticized MPs for purchasing pricey vehicles.
She expressed disbelief that no lawmakers had spoken out against the purchase, which she claimed was made at a time when Nigerians were feeling the effects of a tough economy.
She said on her Twitter page, "You all had the arrogance to spend limited public resources on luxury cars at a time when the bulk of your population cannot feed themselves, get around, pay school fees, or pay healthcare bills owing to the cost of living issue.
"At this point, it is clear that you wish to keep up your pattern of poor behavior. Please know that you all are the biggest threat to our democracy because not single one of you, @nassnigeria @HouseNGR @NGRSenate, noticed the heartlessness of that decision to purchase 360 brand-new Toyota SUVs for yourself at this time of extreme economic suffering for the public and country.
The Human Rights Writers Association (HURIWA) also urged Nigerians to demonstrate peacefully against the National Assembly for its extreme insensitivity, stating that it is totally irrational for the government to spend the nation's hard-earned money on the luxury of lawmakers.
"It is provocative that National Assembly members in Abuja are busy sharing exotic cars worth millions of dollars at a time when most families are struggling to provide their members with three square meals per day and hospitals and roads are rapidly collapsing throughout the Country." It declared.
Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, president of the association, expressed regret that "the country generates billions of dollars from export of crude oil, from tariffs and other customs taxation; from the billion of Naira made locally from internally generated sources, including that of immigration and federal inland Revenue services; and to notice that the National Assembly, which is an arm of government, is gifting the over 469 members special utility vehicles each worth over N160 mill."
In addition, he stated that "this ostentatious lifestyle of the members of the National Assembly will heighten insecurity, increase sophisticated crimes such as kidnappings, armed robberies, and targeted assassinations because there are over 50 million young people out of work and out of school with no hope of finding anything useful to do."
