Gbajabiamila: State House 2025 Budget for Agencies will be Based on Needs Assessment 

*Says govt will continue to prioritise food security 

*Stresses BPP Act set for review to meet international best practices, reduce red-tapism

*Affirms nation’s commitment to peaceful use of nuclear technology

*House committee pledges to ensure strict compliance with budgetary appropriation

Deji Elumoye and Juliet Akoje in Abuja 

Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has disclosed that the 2025 budget for State House agencies would be based on a thorough needs assessment to ensure that funding allocated to such agencies are based on actual requirements. 

Gbajabiamila spoke to newsmen in Abuja after a one-day fact-finding tour of some government agencies under the supervision of State House.

He said, “In any country in the world, resources are limited. For us, it is about prioritising. Where are we so far? What have the agencies done?

“How have they measured up to their mandates and how important are their mandates in terms of the vision of this administration and the Renewed Hope Agenda?

”A lot of agencies are not properly funded. Do we merge some of these agencies, do we scrap some? I’m not talking about State House agencies. 

”In 2025, we are not going to budget in a vacuum. We will budget based on needs assessment.”

Gbajabiamila visited the Nigeria Agriculture and Land Development Agency (NALDA), Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission (NAEC), and National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI).

Earlier, in separate interactions with heads and staff of the agencies, he pledged that the presidency would ensure better welfare and working conditions of staff within the agencies under the supervision of the State House.

Gbajabiamila  urged the staff of these agencies to embrace innovation, excellence, and professionalism, while supporting their chief executives to succeed. 

Gbajabiamila also emphasised the importance of transparency in the procurement process, saying it is critical to upholding the administration’s commitment to good governance and accountability.

During the tour, the chief of staff underscored the importance of the agencies in driving the government’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the economic and development sectors, and reiterated the administration’s resolve to strengthen the institutions. 

He stated that the visit, first of its kind under the current administration, was a follow-up to the recent one-day retreat for Heads of State House Agencies. 

The retreat was convened to reinforce the administration’s commitment to strengthening institutions, ensuring they were well-equipped to fulfill their mandates, and reducing the cost of governance.

Assuring the agencies that their concerns about staff remuneration, office accommodation, and other legitimate challenges would be addressed, Gbajabiamila said measures would be put in place to create a more conducive work environment. 

”This government is particular about diversifying our economy and the role the agriculture sector has to play is very important,” he stated during an interactive session with Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of NALDA, Cornelius Adebayo. 

”This government is focusing very seriously on agriculture and food security and we trust that NALDA will continue to be innovative in its operations, including developing greenhouses and supporting the cultivation of more arable land across the country,” he added. 

Responding to a presentation by the acting Director-General, Olusegun Omotola, at BPP, Gbajabiamila commended the agency for saving the federal government some N1.7 trillion from 2009 to 2022 by blocking loopholes that would have been exploited during procurement. 

He said, ”The act establishing the bureau is going through a review process that will make it meet international best practices, reduce corruption, red-tape and bureaucracy. 

”We will also look at the staff remuneration and why there has not been a review over the years, especially, when compared with sister agencies, like Debt Management Office, whose remuneration and salary structure have been reviewed a couple of times over the years.” 

On the National Council on Procurement (NCP), an establishment of the law that had, however, never been inaugurated since the creation of the bureau, Gbajabiamila  hinted that Tinubu intended to inaugurate the council, conscious of the need for the proposed amendments to the BPP Act.

Addressing staff of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Gbajabiamila commended the agency for remitting over N1 trillion proceeds to the federal government since 1999. He emphasised the need for improvement, saying, ”We are ready to work with you to make you achieve your mandate optimally.”

Director-General of BPE, Ayodeji Gbeleyi, disclosed that the agency had received N93.4 billion from privatisation of projects in the first and second quarters of 2024, though this fell short of the revised expected revenue of N259.7 billion. 

At NAEC, the chief of staff reaffirmed government’s commitment to developing nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, including electricity generation in the country. 

Responding to a presentation by NAEC Chairman, Professor Yusuf Ahmed, Gbajabiamila said government recognised the importance of incorporating nuclear technology into Nigeria’s energy mix to meet the country’s growing energy needs.  

At NASENI, Gbajabiamila commended the agency for championing local content development, particularly in the areas of electric vehicles, motorbikes and solar-powered smart irrigation systems, through accelerated technology transfer. 

He expressed Tinubu’s confidence in the country’s human resources and their ability to lead technological advancement. 

He said, ”I’m very impressed with what we have seen and what we have heard. The fact that you have 35 market-ready products and have completed 44 tangible projects and initiatives in 10 months speaks volumes for your commitment, dedication and passion for what you are doing.”

On staff welfare, Gbajabiamila stated that creating an enabling work environment was very important to boosting staff morale and productivity. 

He said due to NASENI’s location at the Idu industrial layout, Abuja, approximately 30 kilometres from the city centre, the management should provide adequate support to ease transportation costs for employees.

Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NASENI, Khalil Halilu, thanked Tinubu for supporting the agency. Halilu reiterated the agency’s commitment to conducting research and development, as well as the production and commercialisation of products that contribute to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and improve the lives of the people. 

In a related development, Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts, Hon. Bamidele Salam, pledged to ensure all agencies of government complied strictly with budgetary appropriations.

Salam made the commitment during the commencement of phase one of the committee’s oversight to probe spending by agencies in the South-west. He said the committee was not out to witch-hunt any ministry, department or agency, but to ensure Nigerians get value for their money.

The committee commenced its oversight with an investigative hearing from August 21 to August 23 in Lagos State.

The committee chairman, in his opening remarks, said the agencies must show value for any money collected. He said violations will not be tolerated, and threatened appropriate sanctions against defaulters, according to the law.

The committee, during its hearing, entertained presentations from the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, and Lagos University Teaching Hospital.

Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Dr. Olugbenga Owoeye, was questioned by the committee at the hearing on various alleged financial and regulatory infractions.

During the question and answer session, the committee queried Owoeye over the recurring non-remittance of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

Owoeye was also questioned for engaging in extra-budgetary spending and failure to adhere to financial regulations.

The committee further frowned on the employment principle of the hospital, which failed to accommodate the federal character principle of sharing available job opportunities equitably across the geo-political zones of the country.

The lawmakers demanded that the hospital should account for a contract sum of N422.3 million as well as the spending of N50.3 million on staff training.

Responding, the CMD stated that the 500-bed facility established in 1907 was in urgent need of support to enable it deliver on its mandate.

LUTH was represented by its Medical Director, Professor Lanre Adeyemo.

Adeyemo explained that the hospital faced challenges that had made its operations very difficult, pointing out that power supply has remained stubbornly outstanding.

He put the cost of powering the hospital at some point at over N181 million monthly, until a federal government intervention of 300 solar panels was deployed.

Other MDAs scheduled to appear before the committee included Nigerian Institute for Medical Research (NIMR); National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi; Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA); Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC); Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC); and Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN).