Ekiti Govt Budgets Additional N300Million For Abuja Governor’s Lodge After Spending N470Million This Year

A SaharaReporters review of the 2026 proposed budget document for Ekiti State has shown that a total of N300 million has been earmarked for the construction of the governor and deputy governor's lodge in Asokoro, Abuja.

This allocation comes despite the fact that N470 million was already spent on the same purpose between January and September 2025.

Earlier, a SaharaReporters review of the Ekiti State Open Contracting Portal revealed that a contract valued at N320 million was awarded for the construction of a guest house chalet within the Government House.

According to the contract details, the project was awarded to the permanent secretary in the "Government House and Protocol Department." The contract was issued on October 8, 2025.

The development comes amid growing calls for transparency and prudence in the management of public resources. It also follows SaharaReporters’ report that 20 key government agencies failed to secure funding for their capital projects in Ekiti State.

While the government spends on lodges for deputy governor and state governor, a review of the Ekiti State audited financial statement for the year ended December 2024 reveals a worrying trend. The document shows that 35 government agencies received no funding for their capital expenditure, despite having a combined capital budget of N3.3 billion.

The affected agencies include: Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; Deputy Governor’s Office; Independent Project Monitoring Office; Ekiti State Boundary Commission; Ekiti State Mortgage Board; Ekiti State Liaison Office, Abuja; Ekiti State Liaison Office, Lagos; Ekiti State Muslim Board; Capital Development Authority; and Ekiti State Pensions Board.

Others are: Ministry of Information and Values Orientation; Office of Establishment and Service Matters; Office of Capacity Development and Reforms; Ekiti State Civil Service Commission; Office of Political and Economic Affairs; Directorate of Farm Settlement and Peasant Farmers Development; and Central Internal Audit.

Additional affected bodies include the Office of the Technical Adviser on Ekiti Knowledge Zone; Office of Human Capital Development and Allied Matters; Ekiti State Mineral Resources Development Agency; Fiscal Responsibility Commission; Ekiti State Housing Corporation; Office of the Public Defender; Ministry of Regional and Special Duties; Ekiti State Library Board; Ekiti State Trust Fund; Agency for Adult and Non-Formal Education; Ekiti State College of Health Science and Technology, Ijero-Ekiti; Ekiti State Board for Technical and Vocational Education; and the Ekiti State Teaching Service Commission.

Others are the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital; Ekiti Drugs and Health Supply Management; Ministry of Local Government Affairs; and the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Home Affairs.

Despite these funding gaps, SaharaReporters earlier reported that the state government awarded contracts worth billions of naira to permanent secretaries.

For instance, the “Supply and Installation of an Instrument Landing System” at the Ekiti State Airport Project, costing N3.3 billion, was awarded to a "Permanent Secretary,” with the procuring agency listed as the “Ministry of Transportation.”

Another contract for the procurement of one 18-seater Sunray bus and four Bajaj motorcycles, valued at N75.1 million, was also awarded to a "Permanent Secretary."

A further contract for the “Second Phase of Establishment of a Standard Meteorological Station,” worth N45 million, was awarded with the contractor listed as a "Permanent Secretary."

Additional airport-related contracts awarded to permanent secretaries included internal electrification and installation of a 1MVA 33/0.415KVA transformer at the Ekiti State Cargo Airport, estimated at N281.731 million; installation of terminal floodlights/solar streetlights at N275.9 million; and extension of a 33KVA dedicated line from the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, to the airport, awarded at N280 million to a "Permanent Secretary.”

Others include the supply of portacabins and related items for establishing a police security post at the airport for N75.3 million; provision of additional office spaces for airlines and agencies at N42.9 million; and construction of four observation spots at the airport for N31 million.

The state government also awarded two contracts for airport operational and other equipment at N1.162 billion each, a total of N2.324 billion, both to a "Permanent Secretary."

There have been growing concerns about transparency in the management of public resources by state governments in Nigeria.