The Digest:
A critical opinion piece, shared by former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, raises a pointed question: Is the Tinubu administration gradually recentering Nigeria’s federal power and resources in Lagos through institutional moves and massive infrastructure spending?
Key Points:
- The piece highlights the relocation or functional shift of key agencies like FAAN, CBN departments, and BOI to Lagos.
- It argues this constitutes a de facto administrative shift without constitutional amendment or national debate.
- The article contrasts the trillions budgeted for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway with the combined annual budgets of ten of Nigeria's lowest-spending states, mostly in the North.
- It frames this as "concentration" of wealth and power, exacerbating regional disparities in security, poverty, and education.
- The author warns that federations can fracture through "neglect dressed up as efficiency" and silent administrative decisions.
- The piece calls for a policy answer on whether Nigeria is being reorganized around Lagos by stealth.
- It concludes that unchecked, this trend risks making national unity a slogan rather than a lived reality.
Sources: Daily Trust (Opinion)
