President Buhari has turned down a proposal to purchase 5 new bulletproof Mercedes S-600 cars for his use at a cost of about N400 million.
Inset photo is for illustrative purposes only
A top source from the presidency has disclosed to the State House correspondents last night that President Muhammadu Buhari has turned down a proposal to purchase five new bulletproof Mercedes S-600 (V222) cars for his use at a whooping cost of about N400 million.
According to The Leadership, the president was said to have rejected the proposal by the Permanent Secretary of the State House, Mr. Nebolisa Emodi when he briefed him on Wednesday. The president ordered that the proposal to procure the cars be dropped, and noted that there was no need for the new vehicles when the ones he inherited from former President Goodluck Jonathan were still in good shape.
The anonymous source at the briefing, quoted Buhari as telling the permanent secretary: “I don’t need any new cars. The ones I’m using now are just fine. Greater effort be made henceforth to capture all State House expenses within the approved national budget, to avoid the frequent recourse by past administrations to presidential intervention funds.”
It was gathered that the proposal to procure the new cars was first made to Jonathan before he left office. “The former president directed, however, that it be represented to President Buhari for approval on his assumption of office since the cars could only be delivered some months after the May 29, 2015 handover date,” another source disclosed to reporters.
Confirming the development, senior special assistant to the president on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said the president’s decision was in line with his commitment to prudence in the management of national resources.
According to the source the president however welcomed other initiatives presented by Emodi to reduce the operating cost of the State House and strengthen its finance and accounts internal control mechanisms.