Abia Governor Alex Otti has addressed the contentious ₦1.5 billion allocated in the state’s 2024 budget for the purchase of two Hilux vans.
Oti blamed the issue on a bug in the Excel program that was utilized to create the budget sheet.
During a press conference on Tuesday, Otti provided the clarification.
The Abia state government allocated ₦1.5 billion for the acquisition of “two Toyota Hilux” vans, according to an online news source.
The budget was broken down in the aforementioned report, with ₦5,946,756,437 allocated for the acquisition of automobiles, ₦2,704,980,600 for van purchases, ₦949,000,000 for truck purchases, and ₦3,011,804,906 for bus purchases.
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Speaking at the Eziukwu Road Market in Aba, where he had gone to show his support for several traders who had lost their products in a fire that happened there on Monday, the governor said he quickly double-checked the report’s data and discovered there was an error.
“I sensed something was off when I saw that news. I was aware that the pricing or the units might be the cause. Thus, I gave the Commissioner for Budget and Planning a call, asking him to look into it and get back to me”.
“It was the Excel that was incorrect, not the units or the price, he reported having done.” You’re going to get into issues like that if you use Excel and the formula is off on a certain line. That was an error that was fixed.
“I don’t believe there is cause for concern. The overall figures are accurate, and the ₦1.5 billion figure was actually ₦150 million, Otti confirmed. “You will receive ₦150 million if you purchase two Hilux vans at a cost of ₦75 million each. That is the correct amount.”
