Amid accusations of passing off the achievements of past administrations as its own, the Presidency has directly responded to recent remarks made by Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso alleging marginalisation of Northern Nigeria under the current administration, telling him he is wrong in his assertions.<\/p>\n
The Presidency presented a list of ongoing and completed federal projects across the northern region, many which observers say began long before President Bola Tinubu came into office.<\/p>\n
According to one of the President’s spokesmen, Mr. Sunday Dare, contrary to Kwankwaso’s assertions, the Tinubu administration has, in less than two years, launched or continued a significant number of infrastructure, energy, health, transportation, and agricultural initiatives across the North\u2014underscoring its strategic importance in national development.<\/p>\n
Just a few days after a personal meeting with President Tinubu, Kwankwaso criticised his administration for what he described as an uneven allocation of federal resources, claiming that the North is being sidelined in favor of the South.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the Kano State Stakeholders\u2019 Dialogue on the 2025 Constitutional Amendment on Thursday, Kwankwaso expressed concern over what he believes is a growing imbalance in the national budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom what we\u2019ve seen, most of the national budget appears to be concentrated in one direction,\u201d said Kwankwaso, who contested the 2023 presidential election under the New Nigeria People\u2019s Party (NNPP).<\/p>\n
He accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of channeling disproportionate resources toward infrastructure projects in the South, while northern regions continue to suffer from underdevelopment, insecurity, and poor infrastructure.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose who are trying to corner everything should remember that some of the challenges we face here\u2014like insecurity and poverty\u2014are largely due to the lack of sufficient resources and the mismanagement of what little we get,\u201d Kwankwaso said. \u201cWhat affects one part of the country will eventually affect the rest.\u201d<\/p>\n
He recounted his recent road journey from Abuja to Kano, lamenting the poor state of highways in the North and citing delays in long-standing infrastructure projects.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was supposed to fly, but my airline rescheduled. So I had to travel by road\u2014Abuja to Kaduna to Kano\u2014and it was a nightmare. These are roads that have been under construction since the early days of APC\u2019s rule,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Kwankwaso acknowledged the need for infrastructure development nationwide but called for a more balanced and inclusive approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe support development projects in every part of the country. But when government concentrates federal resources in one region while leaving others behind, that\u2019s not governance\u2014it\u2019s exclusion,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He urged President Tinubu to make changes to ensure fairer distribution of national resources, stressing that a united and balanced country benefits all.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is the time for the government to prove it represents all Nigerians\u2014not just one side,\u201d Kwankwaso concluded.<\/p>\n
But Dare, in his social media post, said that the most visible federal interventions are the ongoing construction and rehabilitation of major highways critical to trade and national cohesion. These include:<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Abuja\u2013Kaduna\u2013Zaria\u2013Kano Dual Carriageway<\/p>\n
\u2022 Sokoto\u2013Badagry Super Highway (including major portions across Kebbi and Sokoto)<\/p>\n
\u2022 Kano\u2013Kongolam Road, Zaria\u2013Funtua\u2013Gusau\u2013Sokoto Dual Carriageway<\/p>\n
\u2022 Dikwa\u2013Gamboru\u2013Ngala Road (a vital corridor in Borno State)<\/p>\n
In addition, the Lafia Bypass (Nasarawa), Zaria\u2013Hunkuyi\u2013Daya Road (Kaduna\/Kano), and the Adamawa\u2013Taraba\u2013Borno road links are receiving federal attention.<\/p>\n
Agriculture and Environmental Protection<\/strong><\/p>\n Also, Dare added, President Tinubu has rolled out transformative agricultural and environmental initiatives, including:<\/p>\n \u2022 A $158.15 million Agriculture Value Chain Development Programme spanning nine Northern states.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Kolmani Integrated Development Project (in Bauchi and Gombe), a major energy-agro-industrial initiative.<\/p>\n \u2022 The ACReSAL programme \u2014 a World Bank\u2013funded six-year effort to restore degraded land and build climate resilience in Northern states.<\/p>\n \u2022 The revitalization of irrigation schemes like the Kano River Project, now operational.<\/p>\n Healthcare Expansion in the North<\/strong><\/p>\n Healthcare investment under Tinubu has seen expansion and upgrades to numerous teaching hospitals and federal medical centres including:<\/p>\n \u2022 Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria<\/p>\n \u2022 Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina<\/p>\n \u2022 University of Jos Teaching Hospital, Jos<\/p>\n \u2022 Federal Medical Centre, Nguru (Yobe)<\/p>\n \u2022 Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto<\/p>\n \u2022 Reinvigoration of 1,000 Primary Health Centers (PHCs) across the North<\/p>\n These facilities are intended to drastically improve health access and outcomes in the region.<\/p>\n Energy and Rail: Powering the North\u2019s Future<\/strong><\/p>\n Energy and transport projects are also in full swing, Dare said.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Ajaokuta\u2013Kaduna\u2013Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline, a 614-km artery of Nigeria\u2019s future gas grid<\/p>\n \u2022 Gwagwalada Power Plant, directly benefiting the North Central zone<\/p>\n \u2022 ABIBA Solar Power Station, Kaduna \u2014 expanding renewable capacity<\/p>\n In the rail sector:<\/p>\n \u2022 Construction of the Kaduna\u2013Kano Rail Line and the Kano\u2013Maradi Rail Line<\/p>\n \u2022 \u20a6100 billion earmarked for the Kaduna Light Rail System<\/p>\n \u2022 Rehabilitation of the Abuja Metro Light Rail<\/p>\n National Programmes and Environmental Resilience<\/strong><\/p>\n Federal institutions such as the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW) and the Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP) are being retooled and funded to tackle desertification and ecological degradation\u2014problems that uniquely impact the North.<\/p>\n According to the Presidency, the conclusion shows that the evidence is overwhelming that from energy to infrastructure, agriculture to healthcare, the breadth of investment under the Tinubu administration in Northern Nigeria cannot be overlooked. “While political criticism is expected, it must be grounded in facts. The evidence shows a region receiving unprecedented attention in less than two years of this administration.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Amid accusations of passing off the achievements of past administrations as its own, the Presidency has directly responded to recent remarks made by Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso alleging marginalisation of Northern Nigeria under the current administration, telling him he is wrong in his assertions. The Presidency presented a list of ongoing and completed federal projects […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[1243,828,56],"class_list":["post-94605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-news","tag-kwankwaso","tag-north","tag-tinubu"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=94605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94605\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=94605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=94605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/everyday.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=94605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}