Jonathan budgets Millions For Animals

The Presidency will next year spend N34.5m
on two wild animals for the State House Zoo
and car trackers for presidential ground fleet
as well as utility vehicles.

Out of the sum, N14.5m was set aside in the
2014 budget as the cost of the two animals
whose names were not given and N20m for
the trackers.

Extra N2m is expected to be expended on two
fleet tracking base stations.

These are contained in the details of the
Appropriation bill presented by President
Goodluck Jonathan through the Minister of
Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to the
National Assembly last week.

Also contained in the plan is the sum of
N50m for the improvement of electrical
installations inside the old Banquet Hall of
the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Apart from the amount earmarked for the
animals, N8m is budgeted for the upgrading
and maintenance of the State House zoo. The
renovation of the horses’ stables/paddock for
the zoo will gulp N15m.

About N5m will also be spent on the purchase
of wildlife capture equipment.
The N50m was appropriated at a time work is
already ongoing on new N2.2bn banquet hall
approved for the Villa by the Federal Executive
Council in November 2012.
The electrification project was however marked
“ongoing” in the budget details to give an
indication that work had already started and
would be completed under the new budget.

Projects that will be carried out in the State
House Medical Centre in the new year include
the building and installation of oxygen/other
gases generating plant at N70m; construction
of VIP Wing -N1.3bn; completion of extension
of Dental Wing, N50m; construction of central
sterilising building,N50m and the provision of
MRI building and mortuary conversion at the
cost of N17.5m.

An X-ray machine will be purchased at a cost
of N35m; mammography machine, N60m;
embalming machine, N1.65m and hydraulic
post-mortem table,N4m.
The purchase of sports kits for the State
House Sports Club will gulp N4. 2m.

The remodeling of the new Vice-President’s
Guest House at 1, Yakubu Gowon, Crescent,
Asokoro will gulp N215m; completion and
rehabilitation of security quarters at Mpape
Artillery and Asokoro, N30m; rehabilitation of
Presidential/ministerial chalet at Airport,
Abuja, N10m; and the rehabilitation of
medical centre’s service quarters, N50m.