By Odita Sunday
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the allocation of N140 million by the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development for the construction and rehabilitation of emir palaces and mosques in Kaduna State, describing it as a gross misplacement of priorities and an unacceptable use of scarce public resources.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Wednesday, HURIWA questioned the relevance of the projects to the statutory mandate of the livestock ministry, which includes livestock production, animal husbandry, pastoral development, dairy production, livestock value chains and national food security.
The rights group said it was unacceptable for a specialised federal ministry established to transform Nigeria’s livestock sector to finance the construction or rehabilitation of religious and traditional institutions.
HURIWA said the allocation was particularly troubling given the challenges confronting the livestock sector, including insecurity, inadequate veterinary services, poor infrastructure, limited access to finance and weak market opportunities.
The organisation also rejected the explanation offered by Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, concerning a controversial budgetary provision initially reported as N1 billion for church musical instruments in Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State.
According to HURIWA, the Deputy Speaker’s office had clarified that the provision, after VAT and other deductions, amounts to about N780 million and is intended for a Youth Re-orientation and Social Support Programme to be implemented through faith-based organisations, including the procurement of evangelical tools and public-address systems.
HURIWA, however, said the clarification failed to address the fundamental question of whether hundreds of millions of naira from the federal treasury should be used to finance an evangelistic programme through churches in a constituency.
The group stressed that Nigeria is a constitutionally secular and religiously diverse country, insisting that public funds must be deployed in accordance with constitutional principles, fiscal responsibility, transparency, accountability and equal citizenship.
On the livestock ministry allocation, HURIWA said the inclusion of funds for the reconstruction of mosques and emir palaces raised serious questions about budgetary discipline, ministerial responsibility and the integrity of Nigeria’s appropriation process.
The association described the development as a distortion of national priorities at a time when the country is battling hunger, unemployment, insecurity, poverty, inadequate agricultural infrastructure and a severe human-capital deficit.
It argued that scarce resources should instead be channelled into livestock breeding, veterinary services, animal health, dairy production, modern ranching, livestock infrastructure, agricultural research, technology, farmers’ support programmes and value-chain development.
HURIWA further warned that the controversy reflects a broader problem in Nigeria’s budgetary system, where specialised ministries are increasingly burdened with projects that appear unrelated to their statutory responsibilities.
According to the group, such practices undermine the purpose of establishing specialised ministries and weaken the government’s capacity to implement coherent national development policies.
HURIWA therefore demanded that the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development immediately publish the full justification and legal basis for the N140 million allocation, including the project proposal, implementation plan, beneficiaries, procurement process and source of the request.
It also demanded the disclosure of contractors, procurement documents, implementation status and the government officials or institutions responsible for initiating, processing and approving the expenditure.
The group insisted that every naira appropriated through the livestock ministry must have a clear and measurable connection to livestock development and national food security.
HURIWA also called on the National Assembly, Budget Office of the Federation, Auditor-General for the Federation and relevant anti-corruption agencies to scrutinise the allocation and determine whether it complies with applicable public-finance, procurement and appropriation laws.
The organisation said the inclusion of an expenditure in an approved budget did not remove the obligation of public institutions to demonstrate that such spending was lawful, necessary, transparent and capable of delivering measurable public value.
HURIWA urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to order a comprehensive review of questionable allocations across federal ministries and agencies, with a view to ensuring that public resources are directed towards projects that directly improve the welfare and productivity of Nigerians.
The group said Nigeria could not afford to divert scarce resources into projects driven by political convenience rather than developmental necessity while citizens continued to grapple with hunger, unemployment, insecurity and declining living standards.
HURIWA maintained that the livestock sector was too important to Nigeria’s food security and economic future to become a funding channel for unrelated projects.
It called for greater investment in productive agriculture, livestock transformation, technology, human-capital development, infrastructure, healthcare, education, job creation and food security.
“Every naira allocated to government must therefore be subjected to the highest standards of transparency, accountability and public value,” the group said.
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