OpenLife Review: Amidst Unimplemented 2026 Budget And Oversight Failure Of 0.02% Capital Release To Health, Akpabio Justifies Multi-Million Naira Prayer Expedition To Italy

OpenLife Review

OpenLife News reports that in a video now viral, Senate President Godswill Akpabio justifies a humongous European pilgrimage to Rome to pray for Tinubu, National Assembly, NASS and against insecurity, saying “unless God protects the house, watchmen watch in vain.”

OpenLife Review contrasts this spiritual expedition with his constitutional role as Chief Watchman of the N32.3trn 2026 capital budget which has recorded below-average or zero implementation, with ministries receiving less than 2% releases.

In the video, it is confirmed that the Senate President returned to Nigeria on Monday, September 21, 2026.

However, exact flight logs detailing his departure date were not publicized and the Senate President did not state the specific number of days for his prayer trip to Italy.

He only disclosed that the visit to the St. Padre Pio Prayer Ground in San Giovanni Rotondo marked his 10th time at the sacred site. But reports of his activities in Italy began circulating on September 20, indicating he was away for just a few days mid-month.

As a top government official, travel costs routinely surge much higher due to variables such as the size of his entourage, premium security arrangements, standard first-class accommodations, or the potential utilization of a private charter or presidential fleet aircraft.

Speaking on arrival from Europe to reporters at an airport tarmac, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said:”Well, I had to go to Italy and  you know, Rome is the capital of the Catholic Church and the world’s capital when it comes to Christianity.

“From there, I touched at  St. Padre Pio Prayer Ground in San Giovanni Rotondo.  I did supplications. I prayed just for the President not just for myself, the vice president and all members of the senate and national assembly and the federal executive council.

“I pray for Nigeria as a whole and I also prayed against insecurity that God should free us from insecurity, I prayed against banditry.

“I pray against terrorism and it might look funny but it’s a truth because in our own religion, we believe that unless God protects the house the watchmen watch in vain and so I decided to take this slight pilgrimage as a spiritual journey to pray for Nigeria…”

The Paradox

This is the paradox of the 10th National Assembly captured in one tarmac interview.

At a time OpenLife investigations show Nigeria’s N32.3 trillion capital budget for 2026 is heading for below-average or zero implementation – with Health Ministry getting 0.02% of its N218bn capital vote, Women Affairs 0.44%, Marine and  Blue Economy less than 1% – the head of the institution constitutionally mandated to oversight and force releases went  on a self-described “slight pilgrimage” in Rome.

The Stark Antithesis

Oversight Failure vs. Spiritual Oversight

The House Committees on Appropriations, Healthcare Services and Public Accounts have documented that the Bottom-Up Cash Plan has frozen capital releases, with only N9.13bn of N1.218 trillion released across eight ministries.

Yet the Senate President’s oversight energy appears directed at St. Padre Pio Prayer Ground in San Giovanni Rotondo in Italy rather than the Office of the Accountant-General in Abuja.

Fiscal Austerity vs. Humongous Pilgrimage Cost

While contractors are unpaid and N16.8 trillion in 2024/2025 capital is being rolled over for the second time to September 30, 2026, a presidential-jet-style European expedition involving estacodes, chartered logistics, and entourage – as seen in the video with over five aides – costs the treasury millions of dollars. Prayers are free, but Rome pilgrimages are not.

The Psalm 127 Defence

Akpabio invokes Psalm 127:1 – “Except the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen watch in vain.” This is theologically sound, but institutionally troubling.

Nigerians elected watchmen to watch the budget, not outsource it to divine intervention after failing to release funds for hospitals, roads and security hardware that would actually fight the banditry he prayed against.

It is a classic Nigerian elite alibi: When governance fails, spiritualize it.

The Senate that approved N68.3 trillion cannot explain why less than 2% reached MDAs, but can afford to fly to the capital of Christianity to pray away insecurity that N1bn capital release to Water Resources or N36m to Health cannot fix.

Investors are not frightened by the devil; they are frightened by policy inconsistency and zero capital implementation. Prayers may move mountains, but they don’t move procurement files at the Budget Office.