FG: Tinubu fair to all regions — north-west biggest infrastructure beneficiary

The federal government says President Bola Tinubu has been fair in the distribution of projects and appointments across Nigeria.

Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, relayed the government’s position in a statement on Sunday.

Idris said insinuations that Tinubu is favouring some regions are “half-truths and fake information”.

He said the administration has consistently upheld fairness, justice, and equity in the allocation of infrastructure and opportunities.

“The distribution of capital projects under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is equitable. No region is playing a second fiddle or ignored,” he said.

He added that all six geopolitical zones have regional development commissions to re-ignite growth.

The minister listed the Lagos–Calabar coastal highway and the Badagry–Sokoto highway as examples of balanced infrastructure projects.

He said work is ongoing on highways, bridges, rail and power projects, while funding has been secured for light rail projects in Kano and Kaduna worth N150 billion and N100 billion, respectively.

According to Idris, metroline projects in Lagos and Ogun also form part of efforts to develop rail infrastructure.

He added that the projects are expected to create over 250,000 jobs nationwide.

The minister said more than 1,000 primary healthcare centres have been rehabilitated and that work is ongoing to restore the eastern rail corridor from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri.

Quoting “verifiable data”, Idris said the north-west has been the biggest beneficiary of approvals, receiving N5.97 trillion, or over 40 percent of allocations.

Other figures, he said, are N2.41 trillion for the south-south, N1.13 trillion for the north-central, N407 billion for the south-east, N400 billion for the north-east, and N604 billion for the south-west (excluding Lagos).

He also reeled out “legacy road projects”, including the 750 kilometre Lagos–Calabar highway, the 1,068 kilometre Sokoto–Badagry superhighway, the 465 kilometre Trans-Sahara highway in Ebonyi, and the redesigned 439 kilometre Akwanga–Jos–Bauchi–Gombe road.

Idris said the north accounts for 52 percent of these projects, while the south has 48 percent.

He added that equity has also been reflected in Tinubu’s appointments, which he said cut across all regions.

“The establishment of five new regional development commissions and the creation of the federal ministry of livestock development further illustrate the president’s determination to address Nigeria’s unique developmental needs in a manner that benefits all sections of the country,” the statement reads.

“President Tinubu is building national infrastructure, not local trophies. Lagos is rightly upgraded as Nigeria’s commercial hub, but the Northwest holds the lion’s share of approvals. This proves that all regions are receiving fair consideration.”

He said Tinubu’s leadership is “inclusive, unifying, and pragmatic”, assuring Nigerians that no part of the country will be left behind.