FG Starts Dodan Barracks Renovations

The Federal Government has begun work on the former seat of power, Dodan Barracks, with intentions to finish the renovations by May 29, 2024.

The facility was under threat from recurring floods, and vital components were rapidly deteriorating, necessitating project work.

This occurs several months after President Bola Tinubu suggested spending N4 billion to update the official mansion in Lagos and an additional N3 billion to renovate the official residence of the state's Vice President.

The sum was authorized by the Federal Executive Council on October 30, 2023, as a component of the N2.18 trillion supplemental budget for the fiscal year 2023.

The budget includes the higher spending on military, works, and welfare programs such conditional cash transfers and wage awards that were agreed upon earlier that month with the organized labor.

On January 1, 2024, Tinubu gave his approval to the measure, which would take effect on March 31. Nonetheless, the Senate decided to prolong the implementation period to June 30 on March 19.

Nigeria's former military headquarters and seat of government was Dodan Barracks in Ikoyi, Lagos. From 1966 to 1991, the Babangida regime designated Abuja as the country's administrative capital.

Jimmy Carter's first official visit by a US president to sub-Saharan Africa took place at Dodan Barracks from March 31 to April 3, 1978.

Following the relocation of the government seat to Abuja by General Ibrahim Babangida in December 1991, the office was renamed as a Liaison Office in Lagos to serve as the presidential liaison for the South-West geopolitical zone.

The building gained prominence in Nigeria's post-independence history despite having been established as a military installation during the British colonial era. It housed the Supreme Military headquarters during the 1967–1970 Nigerian civil war and served as the office and residence of military heads of state, such as Yakubu Gowon, Murtala Muhammed, Olusegun Obasanjo, and Muhammadu Buhari.

Jimmy Carter made his first state visit to sub-Saharan Africa from March 31 to April 3, 1978, staying at Dodan Barracks.

It became a Liaison Office in Lagos, serving presidential liaison in the South-West geopolitical zone, after General Ibrahim Babangida shifted the seat of government to Abuja in December 1991.

It also offers high government officials traveling to or via Lagos protocol and logistical support services.

The State House's then-Permanent Secretary, Tijjani Umar, announced intentions in April 2022 to renovate the old seat of government and gather and preserve historical materials for future generations.

He pointed out that the restoration will involve modernizing the building's library and historical items as well as making it accessible to scholars and researchers.