March 7, 2026 | SUNTV Global Channel | News
The Cross River State Government has budgeted another N2 billion for the renovation of the governor’s lodge in the 2026 fiscal year, barely nine months after spending N994 million on the same project.
A review of the state’s approved 2026 budget shows that the allocation is part of several spending items connected to the maintenance, renovation, and furnishing of properties linked to the governor’s official residence.
Records indicate that between January and September 2025, the state had already spent N994 million renovating the governor’s lodge. Despite the significant expenditure within that period, the 2026 budget includes an additional N2 billion for further renovation of the same facility.
The budget also earmarks N150 million for the furnishing of the governor’s lodge.
Further allocations in the budget reveal that N150 million has been set aside for the renovation of the governor’s residence, while another N150 million has been allocated for furnishing the residence.
In total, the combined spending for renovation and furnishing related to the governor’s lodge and residence in the 2026 budget runs into several billions of naira.
This development comes amid growing scrutiny of government spending in the state.
Earlier reports had revealed that the Cross River State Government spent N7.6 billion on the rehabilitation of the governor’s offices in 2024, despite the fact that official budget records showed that only N4 billion had been approved for the project.
Initially, the 2024 budget allocated N1 billion for the rehabilitation exercise. However, the Cross River State House of Assembly later approved a supplementary budget in July 2024, increasing the allocation to N4 billion.
Budget performance documents later showed that no additional approvals were granted beyond the revised N4 billion allocation.
Despite this, records indicate that N7.6 billion was eventually spent on the project, raising concerns over an extra N3.6 billion expenditure beyond the approved budget.
The repeated allocations for renovations have sparked concerns among observers about the state government’s spending priorities, especially at a time when many Nigerians are grappling with economic hardship and pressing development needs.
— SUNTV Global Channel Reporting
