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As Nigerians prepare to protest the widespread hardship in the land, it’s important to reassess the focus of their grievances. Although President Tinubu announced the tough but necessary decisions on subsidy removal and exchange rate floating, the real obstacles hindering Nigeria’s progress and causing the hardship are the state governors, who have mismanaged resources and prioritised corruption over development.
While the President and federal government can undoubtedly improve in many areas, their efforts will be hindered if state governors remain unaccountable. The federal government’s initiatives to alleviate hardship are often implemented through the states, but governors continue to shirk their responsibilities.
Ironically, the governors are the biggest beneficiaries of the subsidy removal, receiving a substantial increase of over 100% in federal allocation. Besides, they have also benefited from other initiatives, such as the NG-CARES programme, which has allocated significant funds to 34 states (as detailed in the attached newspaper publication). Despite this considerable windfall, there has been no corresponding improvement in their performance, development, or enhancement of the standard of living for Nigerians.
The current revenue sharing formula is allocated as follows: 52.68% to the federal government, 26.72% to states, and 20.60% to local governments. Beyond the federal allocation, the states also receive a substantial share of Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue, with 50% allocated to states, 15% to the federal government, and 35% to local governments.
In Nigeria, prior to the landmark Supreme Court judgment, states had total control over local government funds. This means that when you combine the percentage of FAAC allocation to states and local governments, states effectively receive 48.32% of the country’s total revenue; while for VAT they receive 85%.
This clearly highlight governors significant financial leverage.
However, instead of utilizing these resources to benefit the Nigerian people, governors have crippled the local government system, denying local areas essential services and development, and prioritizing corruption and mismanagement over tangible development. This entrenched culture of neglect and poor performances by most governors has exacerbated the suffering of the people, perpetuating a cycle of underdevelopment and hardship.
See what Chief Nysom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory has achieved in Abuja within one year. Apart from Lagos, which state governor can show similar evidence of performance? He did same as Governor of Rivers State and is showing it in Abuja.
The resources available to governors are more than sufficient to stimulate the economy, but they choose not to act. Unfortunately, they are hardly held accountable for their inaction. Nigerians have always directed their protests solely at the federal government, overlooking governors maladministration and impunity. If the hardship must be addressed, then Nigerians must demand accountability from all levels of government, particularly the governors.
Ideally, the protest should be directed towards the real problem – the governors excesses, impunity, and maladministration not the President and federal government always. Let’s demand transparency, accountability, and tangible development from our state governments, too.
As a nation , we must acknowledge that the federal government alone cannot solve Nigeria’s problems. The states must take responsibility and act as partners in progress, not just beneficiaries of federal allocation.
Those planning the protest should redirect their grievances and hold the governors accountable.
Inyali Peter, Ph.D
Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Inyali Peter, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.
