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Professor Pat Utomi has criticised the All Progressives Congress (APC) over the distribution of luxury sport utility vehicles (SUVs) to selected party youth leaders, questioning the government’s spending priorities amid concerns over the salaries of Nigerian soldiers and the country’s economic challenges.
Utomi, a chieftain of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), condemned the reported distribution of brand-new 2026 Toyota Prado SUVs, arguing that the money spent on the vehicles could have been channelled into critical sectors such as healthcare.
In a post on X on Sunday, the professor expressed concern that an APC youth leader could showcase expensive vehicles at a time Nigerians had been told that government funds were limited.
He wrote: “Nigerian soldiers are being paid peanuts as salaries, yet an APC youth leader is flaunting SUVs worth billions of naira.
“This is the same government that told Nigerians there was no longer money in the treasury. At this point, they must think we are fools!”
In a separate post, Utomi questioned whether the expenditure could have been put to better use, particularly in providing emergency medical services.
“Each of the SUVs in this video costs more than ₦100 million. I wonder how many world-class ambulances the millions being spent on these vehicles could buy. What a pity!” he wrote.
The criticism followed a video shared by APC National Youth Leader, Dayo Israel, showing the brand-new Toyota Prado SUVs he said were presented to selected youth leaders to support the party’s mobilisation efforts ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Announcing the distribution, Israel wrote: “Today, I presented brand-new 2026 Prado to my committed selected youth leaders to aid their election mobilisation activities.”
He also thanked First Lady Oluremi Tinubu for what he described as her continued support for the party’s structure under his leadership.
Israel added: “The party is supreme, and that supremacy will show in our action in this election period; we will deliver polling unit by polling unit.”
The video, which has since been deleted, attracted criticism on social media, with some Nigerians questioning the timing of the vehicle distribution against the backdrop of economic hardship and the rising cost of living.
The controversy has also drawn attention to the cost of political mobilisation and the need to justify expenditure on party activities when many Nigerians continue to face financial difficulties.
Utomi’s intervention adds to the growing debate over the priorities of political parties as they prepare for the 2027 elections, particularly the contrast between resources allocated to political mobilisation and the needs of public institutions, including the military and healthcare services.
However, the report does not establish the source of funding for the vehicles or whether public funds were used to purchase them. The cost of the reported fleet and the circumstances surrounding its acquisition therefore remain central questions in the controversy.
