Amidst public criticism over the proposed luxury vehicle purchase by federal lawmakers, Senate Committee on Services Chairman Sunday Karimi defends the choice of foreign-made SUVs, citing quality and durability.
Karimi, who represents Kogi West Senatorial District, explained during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today program that lawmakers require reliable vehicles for oversight duties in poorly maintained road conditions.
He addressed the question of why lawmakers prefer foreign-made vehicles, stating, “Today, we decided for Toyota because Toyota has a name and a longstanding name for quality and durability… As our local manufacturing companies develop, we are going to patronise them.”
Karimi acknowledged the need for vehicles, emphasizing that federal lawmakers “need the vehicles for oversights, to travel all over our constituencies.”
He justified the purchase of utility vehicles, emphasizing that it isn’t illegal due to the challenging state of Nigerian roads.
“If you look at Nigerian roads all over the Federation, we have a serious problem because nothing much has been done in the last years. Most of our roads are terribly bad,” he said.
Regarding the choice of a foreign-made brand of vehicles, Karimi expressed openness to supporting the Nigerian manufacturing sector in the future.
He stated, “In the future, as the Nigerian manufacturing sector develops, we will patronise them.”
The controversy revolves around the perceived extravagance of acquiring foreign vehicles instead of promoting domestic production.
