Atiku demands Tinubu release SUV purchase details or admit fraud

Presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has directly challenged President Bola Tinubu to provide full disclosure on a ₦15.13 billion appropriation for 39 Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) in the 2026 Federal Budget. Abubakar, through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, stated that if the Tinubu administration cannot publish the chassis numbers, suppliers, and contract details for these vehicles, it should admit that Nigerians have been defrauded.

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If those vehicles have already been procured, the government should immediately publish the make, model, year of manufacture, supplier, contract details and the Vehicle Identification Number VIN, popularly known as the chassis number, of each of the 39 vehicles. If the procurement is still ongoing, Nigerians deserve to know why, nearly eight months into the fiscal year, such an expensive purchase has not been concluded.

An analysis by the public accountability organization Tracka revealed that the 39 SUVs translate to an astonishing ₦387 million per vehicle. Abubakar insists that the government must now answer questions raised by this figure. He demanded that if the vehicles have been procured, the government should immediately publish their make, model, year of manufacture, supplier, contract details, and Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN). If procurement is ongoing, Nigerians deserve to know why such an expensive purchase remains incomplete nearly eight months into the fiscal year.

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What manner of President signs a budget with figures like these into law without demanding rigorous scrutiny? Was the President asleep at the wheel while the budget was being prepared, or did he knowingly approve allocations that now require public explanation? Either possibility should worry every Nigerian.

Abubakar listed a range of ultra-luxury vehicles, including Rolls-Royce Cullinans and Bentley Bentaygas, questioning whether any of these were purchased at such an exorbitant price. He asked what justifies the extraordinary price tag if not such high-end models. He further questioned the President's scrutiny of the budget, asking if he was "asleep at the wheel" or knowingly approved allocations requiring public explanation, stating that either scenario is worrying.

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The easiest way to silence suspicion is transparency. Publish the procurement documents. Publish the invoices. Publish the suppliers. Publish the chassis numbers. If the figures are genuine, the documents will speak for themselves. If they are not, Nigerians deserve to know who turned the procurement of 39 SUVs into a ₦15.13 billion scandal.

Linking this demand for transparency to the economic sacrifices Nigerians have made, Abubakar also pointed to ₦947.70 billion earmarked for 2,579 empowerment projects. He insisted that Nigerians need to know the locations, beneficiaries, contractor selection process, and monitoring plans for these projects. "The easiest way to silence suspicion is transparency. Publish the procurement documents. Publish the invoices. Publish the suppliers. Publish the chassis numbers," he declared, emphasizing that public money must be accounted for.

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Public money belongs to the Nigerian people. Every kobo must be accounted for.