Fresh details from Nigeria’s federal payments portal, Govspend, have revealed questionable spending patterns by the Nigerian Police Force, NPF, including the purchase of biscuits and toilet rolls at highly inflated prices during 2023.
According to the records, the NPF spent a staggering N22.28 million on 85 cartons of Cream Crackers biscuits as part of “dry ration for personnel on discreet security operations.”
On October 26, 2023, the force paid N7.073 million to Danlokey Systems Ltd for 25 cartons, putting the unit cost at N282,928 per carton.
On October 4, 2023, another N7.073 million went to the same company for 30 cartons for operations in Taraba State.
Earlier, on August 30, 2023, the police paid N8.136 million for 30 cartons for operations in Yobe State.
In total, the 85 cartons averaged N261,717 per carton, far above regular retail prices.
Similarly, the police splurged N13.3 million on toilet rolls between April and July 2023.
On April 21, 2023, Waves Fulfillment Ltd received N6.558 million for 12 packs of Carla Rose toilet rolls (each pack contains 48 rolls).
Just three months later, on July 27, 2023, another N6.8 million was paid to the same company for 12 more packs.
This brought the total to 24 packs (1,152 rolls) at an average cost of N554,166 per pack.
However, market surveys conducted by SaharaReporters show a sharp contrast with prevailing retail prices.
On popular online stores, Jumia lists a pack of Carla Rose (48 rolls) for N55,000, while on Konga the same product sells for N50,000. By this measure, 24 packs should cost only around N1.32 million, indicating that the NPF paid nearly ten times the market value.
The revelations have sparked concerns over possible procurement fraud, inflated contracts, and systemic mismanagement within the police force.
Efforts to obtain comments from the Nigerian Police on the matter were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report, leaving the questions around the controversial expenditures unanswered yet.