The Senate on Tuesday justified the planned purchase of luxury vehicles for lawmakers amidst harsh economic conditions facing Nigerians.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Services, Sunday Karimi, told journalists in Abuja that the leadership of the two chambers of the National Assembly decided to buy the luxury cars for lawmakers because they want vehicles that will not only be durable on Nigerian roads but also be able to maintain for the period of four years.
“It was based on a comparative analysis of the cost of technical issues and durability on Nigeria roads… We want something that we can maintain for another four years.
“And the issue of buying vehicles for the National Assembly, you know it is a recurring issue, it occurs every assembly, it will always come up,” Mr Karimi said.
There has been public outrage over the plan by the federal legislature to buy vehicles for its members despite the bad state of the nation’s economy.
The National Assembly comprises 469 members. While the Senate has 109 members, the House of Representatives has 360 members.
The lawmakers rejected cheaper Sedan and Salon cars but instead chose expensive luxury Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs).
Rejection of the cheaper cars for their official duties is a violation of the revenue package put together for them and other public office holders by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).
Karimi, the senator representing Kogi West, said there are records that some state governors also purchase luxury utility vehicles for members of state houses of assembly and local government chairmen as their official cars.
“If you go to state houses of assembly today, check out most of them. Before they were even inaugurated, the governor would have bought vehicles waiting for them, even local government chairmen,” the senator said.
Karimi said the chairman of his local government in Kogi State is driving the same model of the vehicle he is using as a senator.
“I drove the vehicle my local government chairman uses, so why the National Assembly?” Mr Karimi asked.
He was, however, silent on the brand of vehicle he and chairman of his local government use.
The Kogi senator stressed that bad roads in his constituency usually damage his vehicle whenever he goes home.
“Somebody that is a minister has more than three land cruisers, prado and other vehicles and you are not asking them questions. Why us?
“And these vehicles that you see, go to Nigeria roads today, If I go home once, my senatorial district, I come back spending a lot on my vehicles because our roads are bad. Am I talking to somebody?”
Mr Karimi also disclosed that the National Assembly has a liability of over N16 billion.
“The cost, let me tell you, hello, listen to me, you know I am the chairman service. When I came into the Senate, when they gave me their liability, they have a liability of over N16 billion that is made up of different this thing including vehicles of 7th assembly 8th and 9th assembly.
“If you are a businessman and you supply vehicles for somebody in 2014 or 2015 or so and up till now they are owing you…. I am not trying to defend anybody, if you see them selling…. If a land cruiser in the market lets say it is A cost, you don’t expect somebody that will supply it to supply it at the price they are selling it in the market. It has to leave a margin and the civil service for supply they allowed for 25 per cent margin plus that and VAT and I think that VAT is 7.5. Out of that 25 per cent margin they will still remove 5 per cent tax from it.
“You are telling someone to supply and he may even not end up making payment for three years and you want him to supply at the price they are selling in the market, it is not possible,” the senator said.
