Funso Doherty, a chartered accountant and politician in Lagos, has advised Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to reimburse the Lagos State account for the funds spent on traveling from Grenada, adding that such expenses amount to public waste.
In a letter to the governor dated January 26, 2024, Doherty asserted that the trip is unjustifiable. He pointed out that Grenada’s national GDP, approximately $1 billion, is significantly smaller than Lagos’s economy, and there is no apparent trade partnership between the two.
Moreover, the chartered accountant emphasized that given Lagos current budget deficit which stands at N400 billion naira, the governor’s trip only adds to the financial burden of the state.
Writing to the governor, he said,
Earlier, it was widely reported in the news that the governor of Lagos, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, flew in a private aircraft to the Caribbean Island and took residency in one of the most expensive resorts in the world.
According to Premium Times, Sanwo-Olu attended a party at Grenada and stayed I an 80-acre private and exquisite location which costs about $132,000 per night.
The online paper also quoted that Mr Sanwo-Olu and other participants alternated between Calivigny Island and Silversand Grenada, an exotic five-year-old seven-star luxury resort located in Grand Anse beach, where some events of the posh celebration were held.
Those familiar with the governor’s itinerary said he left Nigeria on Wednesday, 17 January for Mrs Achimugu’s birthday carnival which began with “a scrumptious welcome breakfast” and “a spectacular dinner with an explosive finish” that day. Other guests had arrived in Grenada on 16 January
Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government replied Premium Times with photos of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s meeting with Grenadian Prime Minister in Grenada.
The government, on its X handle said the presentation was made after talks on bilateral relations between Grenada and Lagos State in St. George at the weekend.