Nigeria’s Housing Ministry Spends ₦148million On Single Toyota Prado Amid Alleged Fund Constraints
Payment details indicate that on March 30, 2026, the ministry paid ₦148,651,162.79 to Lanre Shittu Motors Nigeria Limited for the supply of “1no of Toyota Prado VX 2023 automatic transmission” for the Federal Public Asset Maintenance Department.
Fresh scrutiny has emerged over public spending in Nigeria following records showing that the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development expended ₦148.6million on the procurement of a single Toyota Prado SUV, despite ongoing concerns about funding constraints affecting key government projects.
Payment details indicate that on March 30, 2026, the ministry paid ₦148,651,162.79 to Lanre Shittu Motors Nigeria Limited for the supply of “1no of Toyota Prado VX 2023 automatic transmission” for the Federal Public Asset Maintenance Department.
The transaction was recorded under reference number 1001388007-1.
The expenditure comes at a time when there have been repeated concerns over the release of capital allocations for ministries, departments, and agencies, with several reporting challenges in accessing funds earmarked for critical infrastructure and development projects.
Earlier in February, the Minister of Health, Ali Pate, disclosed that the health ministry received only ₦36million out of the ₦218 billion appropriated for its 2025 capital budget.
He made the disclosure in Abuja during the 2026 budget defence session with the House Committee on Healthcare Services.
Pate explained that delays in the release of Nigeria’s counterpart funding contributions affected access to certain funds, noting that the implementation of the 2025 capital budget was stalled by these constraints.
He added that while the ministry’s personnel allocation was fully released and utilised, the capital component was impacted by the bottom-up cash planning system operated by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
In March, President Bola Tinubu formally requested approval from the Senate to secure external loans totalling $6 billion, estimated between ₦9trillion and ₦9.6trillion, to support Nigeria’s financing needs.
The request was conveyed in two separate letters addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and read during plenary.
In one of the letters, the president sought legislative approval to obtain a $5billion loan from Abu Dhabi Bank to help address the country’s budget deficit and meet existing debt financing obligations.
The loan request came amid ongoing efforts to finance budgetary gaps, as well as existing debt commitments.
Four months earlier, the World Bank approved a $1 billion Development Policy Financing loan for Nigeria under the “Nigeria Actions for Investment and Jobs Acceleration (P512892)” initiative.
According to a project document published on October 27, the facility comprises a $500 million International Development Association credit and a $500million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The latest spending record by the housing ministry comes within the broader context of these fiscal developments and ongoing budget implementation processes across government institutions.
Previously, SaharaReporters reported that the Bola Tinubu Presidency plans to spend N3.3billion on the purchase and replacement of vehicles in 2026.
According to the budget proposal, N2.5billion is earmarked for the procurement of State House operational vehicles, while N758 million is allocated specifically for the replacement of SUVs.
Additionally, N115million has been budgeted for the purchase of tyres for bullet-proof vehicles, plain cars, CCU vehicles, platform trucks, SUVs, ambulances, and other utility and operational vehicles.
