ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State has built another governor’s lodge in Abuja, worth N1.2 billion, despite a debt figure of over N41 billion.
Umahi who stated this on Friday after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential villa in Abuja, boasted that the lodge is the best in the country.
He explained that he was at the presidential villa to invite President Muhammadu Buhari to commission the governor’s lodge and that the president had accepted the invitation.
According to data released by Debt Management Office, the Ebonyi State has a debt profile of N41.6 billion as at 31 March 2022.
But Governor Umahi said he decided to build the new lodge because the existing one in Maitama, Abuja, was not fit enough for him to discharge his duties.
Umahi revealed that he bought a 3,000 square meters land in Asokoro, Abuja, in 2016, for the building of the new lodge.
“Luckily, I got land. Very good price, at N350 million and I paid in 2016 but I didn’t start building until about November 2020. And by June 2022, I had completed it.
“When I say it is the best governor’s lodge anywhere in this country. I mean, it’s the best governor’s lodge anywhere in this country“, Umahi said.
The Governor added that, although he could not give the exact amount the project gulped, he is certain that the cost was within N1.2 billion.
“I wouldn’t be able to say how much it took, but I know it should be under… if it’s up to N1 billion, it cannot be more than N1.2 billion. But when you see it, you will think it is something built with N10 billion. Mark my words, you will not find any other lodge not like that (in Nigeria),” he said.
Asked to comment on the benefits of the lodge to Ebonyi people, Mr Umahi said the project would help to build the self-confidence of Ebonyi people and overcome the feeling that they are being marginalised.
“And to some people, we use it to punish those of them that neglect us. They are being punished by this gigantic project. And my projects are projects you can’t find anywhere in the South-East. You can crosscheck that. So, it is punishment,” Mr Umahi said.