24th October 2024
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday announced cost-cutting measure to reduce government spending by his cabinet members concerning official convoys and security details.
The new directives, restricted Ministers, Ministers of State, and Heads of Agencies of the Federal Government to a maximum of three vehicles in their official convoys.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, who released the statement said “The cost-cutting measure was announced today in a statement signed by the President.”
Accordingly “No additional vehicles will be assigned to them for movement,” the President affirmed in a statement he signed Thursday titled, ‘President Tinubu issues new directives on reduction in cost of governance.’
This is not the first time President Tinubu is announcing cost cutting measures, in January 2024, Tinubu issued a directive which the Presidency said was to reduce government expenditure.
The directive included reducing his entourage on foreign trips from 50 to 20 officials.
For local trips, he reduced it to 25 officials.
Similarly, he reduced the Vice President’s entourage to five officials on foreign trips and 15 for local trips.
Added in the directive issued, Tinubu also ordered all ministers, ministers of state, and heads of agencies to have at most five security personnel attached to them.
READ MORE; Meet the 7 new ministerial nominees and their portfolios
“The security team will comprise four police officers and one Department of State Services officer.
“No additional security personnel will be assigned,
He further instructed the National Security Adviser to engage with the Military, Paramilitary and Security Agencies to determine a suitable reduction in their vehicle and security personnel deployment.
According to the Presidency, “All affected officials are expected to comply with these new measures immediately, underscoring the urgency and seriousness of these changes.”
While many Nigerians insist that a strict adherence remains to be seen, as it was with previous directives, a reversal of the pump price of petrol, they said is the surest and quickest rout to ameliorating the current hardship in the country.
