Emerging details of this year’s budget proposals indicate that the Presidency has proposed to spend N574m on food in 2011. When this total is spread over the 365 days in 2011, the average amount that the Presidency will spend on food per day is a little over N1.57m.

The N574m is N168.7m more than the N405.3m spent by the same office on ‘food stuff supplies’ in 2010. However, the 2010 figure is exclusive of the sum expended on foods eaten during summits. A separate sub-head for “meals/entertainment” for summits held at the State House last year totalled N73m.

It (N574m) is also part of the N13.9bn that will be used to fund sub-heads and the overhead cost of the State House or Presidential Villa.

The details, which our correspondent obtained on Monday, showed that the rehabilitation of the State House Guest House in the Marina, Lagos, would cost N1.2bn.

Similarly, “residential furniture” items for the Presidency are to be purchased for a whopping N1.1bn this year.

The furnishing of Vice-President’s two guest houses — one in Asokoro and the other called “Aguda House,”— will cost N500m.

The furniture for the guest house in Asokoro will cost N100m, while that of Aguda House will consume N400m.

Incidentally, the lounge of Aguda Guest House was extended in 2010 for N50m. Another guest house was also furnished for the Vice-President’s use in 2010 for N50m.

This year, the “purchase of canteen/kitchen equipment” for the Presidential Villa will also gulp N553.6m.

Further details of the 2011 budget estimates showed that out of the N553.6m, N150m will be used to fund “household equipment and materials for the Vice-President’s office.”

However, in 2010, a provision of N240m was made for the purchase of office, household and kitchen equipment for Asokoro Guest House.

Other details show that the Director of Protocol to the Vice-President, his Aide- De- Camp, and other aides are to be housed in new official quarters to cost N560m in 2011.

Dodan Barracks in Lagos will also benefit from the presidential renovation in 2011, as it has a provision of N400m in the budget.

President Goodluck Jonathan presented a N4.23tn budget to the National Assembly for approval on December 15.

The sum comprises N198.12bn for statutory transfers, N542.32bn for debt service; N2,481.71tn for recurrent (non-debt) expenditure; and N1,005.9tn for capital expenditure.

The government also earmarked the sum of N347.2bn for critical infrastructure development.

This includes capital allocations of N86.25bn for power; N20.74bn for Aviation; N10.27bn for petroleum resources; N136.88bn for works; N48.9bn for transport; N44.18bn for the Federal Capital Territory; N35.01bn for education; N33.35bn for health; N29.46bn for agricultural development; and N24.76bn for water resources.

The report on the investigation of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) under the leadership of its former director general, Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, showed that in 2008, the Exchange spent N186 million to buy Rolex watches for long serving employees.

The yet-to-be officially released report, a product of investigations by KPMG, an audit firm, and Aluko Oyebode & Co., a legal firm, revealed that “at the beginning of 2008, the NSE expended the sum of N45 million in purchasing 64 Rolex watches for presentation to employees who had served the NSE for 10 years.”.....

The report also noted that “later in the same year, Candy Floss Limited (a company owned by Yinka Idowu, former head of NSE’s corporate affairs department), was given N95 million for an additional purchase of 91 Rolex watches, and subsequently, after the award ceremony, another 10 Rolex watches at the cost of N46 million were purchased.”

Meanwhile, the investigators said they observed that the award ceremony document showed that only 73 out of the 165 Rolex watches purchased were actually presented to the awardees, meaning that 92 Rolex watches valued at N99.5 million were unaccounted for.

“We further observed that the schedule containing the list of staff members eligible for long service awards only contains 63 names; suggesting that 10 additional and unauthorised people received presentations,” the report added.

Car gifts

Furthermore, Candy Floss Limited, according to the report, was given N100 million to purchase 14 cars to be presented to employees who had served the NSE for 25 to 30 years.

At the same time, the report said that three cars purchased by the NSE in January and March 2008 for N59 million - one Land Cruiser purchased for N30 million, and two Lexus cars purchased for N29 million -were written off the NSE books at the end of the same year by their allocation to the Long Service Award account, as part of the gifts given during the ceremony.

Meanwhile, the award ceremony document showed that only seven people were presented with cars, compared to the 14 cars which were to be purchased by Candy Floss Limited and the three additional cars written off; meaning that 10 cars, valued at approximately N66 million, were unaccounted for.

The auditors also revealed that “although Candy Floss Limited was given the sum of N50 million for the special presentation to employees who had worked with the NSE for 25 to 30 years, another sum of N55 million was again disbursed in respect of the special presentation, which was to include a luxurious jeep and a special gift of the former director general’s choice.

“This suggests that there was a duplication of payment and a double purchase of a luxury car for the former director general’s choice,” the auditors said.

Further investigations

While the fact that Articles 52 of the NSE Employee Handbook for Management and Senior Staff, as well as Article 55 of the Employee Handbook for Junior Staff limits the value of gifts/cash that can be given to employees for the long service award, the auditors said, “We observed that the gifts awarded/presented far exceeded the value stated in these handbooks, “adding that “these Articles further stated that these awards should be presented to only members of staff, but we observed that former members of staff were also given awards.”

However, the auditors said further investigations to be carried out in respect of the award will determine if any payments were made by Candy Floss Limited to the accounts of NSE officers, including that of Mrs. Okereke-Onyuike.

Boy’s shopping spree puts spotlight on alleged corruption in Azerbaijan

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Even by the standards of a city that celebrates extravagance, it was a spectacular shopping spree: In just two weeks early last year, an 11-year-old boy from Azerbaijan became the owner of nine waterfront mansions.

The total price tag: about $44 million -- or roughly 10,000 years' worth of salary for the average citizen of Azerbaijan. But the preteen who owns a big chunk of some of Dubai's priciest real estate seems to be anything but average.

His name, according to Dubai Land Department records, is Heydar Aliyev, which just happens to be the same name as that of the son of Azerbaijan's president, Ilham Aliyev. The owner's date of birth, listed in property records, is also the same as that of the president's son