Olumide Lawal
The Senate has admitted that it bought a bulletproof Range Rover Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) vehicle at the cost of $298,000 (N49.1 million) and not N298 million as was being reported in the media.
The senate procured the said vehicle but not at the price that was being reported, Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Publicity Sen. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, told newsmen on Tuesday in Abuja.
According to Senate spokesperson, the vehicle was procured in 2015 for $298 at an exchange rate of N165 to a dollar.
“Our attention has been drawn to the various false and mischievous reports in the media about the price of the vehicle which the Senate was said to have bought as part of its convoy but was later abandoned when it got impounded by the Customs over the controversy surrounding import duty payment.
“The correct price of the vehicle when it was imported in 2015 is $298,000 which at the prevailing rate of N165 to a dollar is about N49, 170.
“The Senate paid N62.5m for the vehicle in November 2015. This is contrary to the mischief by those who decided to turn the $298,000 to N298 million as the price of the vehicle.
Sabi said for the avoidance of doubt, the price the Senate paid for that vehicle is N62.5m and not N298 million.
The Senate had been in the eye of the storm over its probe of the activities of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) with media reports alleging that the upper legislative chamber was on a revenge mission.
Media reports alleged that attention of the Senate on the NCS was due to the fact that the service impounded an SUV allegedly procured by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki.
The report said that the service refused to bulge in spite of the intervention of the Senate to release the SUV.
