Adedayo Akinwale in Baia
A group under the auspices of Nigeria First Project Initiative has described that narrative that the “North” is marginalised under administration of President Bola Tinubu as a false.
It described the false narrative as a weapon self-acclaimed regional and ethnic champions use to extract personal concessions.
The National Coordinator of the group, Hamza Saulawa and its Director, Research and Documentation, Bishir Dauda in a statement issued Sunday said records that are in the public domain contradict the narrative being peddled around.
The group maintained that the persistent campaign that the “North” under the Tinubu administration was being marginalised, undermined, and short-changed, being peddled by the opposition politicians, critics, dissidents, and a section of the media, is without convincing evidence and irrefutable facts.
It said from its findings, the policies and programs of the Tinubu administration impact the country as a whole, irrespective of geographical location.
It added that the unification of foreign exchange markets, which terminates racketeering and round-tripping of forex; the abrogation of the opaque and corruption-ridden fuel subsidy regime; and the tax reform, among others, are manifesting positive effects.
This, according to the group has led to an increase in the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), which all 36 states of the Federation and Abuja enjoy.
It said today, there is no state in Nigeria that cannot pay workers’ salaries, adding that many states, including those from the Northern part of the country, have paid outstanding gratuity of several months to their retirees and, at the same time, are undertaking infrastructural projects across critical sectors, including education, health, agriculture, works, among others.
It noted: “In terms of federal project share, for example, the North is not left behind. While much noise has been made about the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, we wonder why the critics have become silent in regard to the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, in which a lot of progress has been made.
“The ongoing work on the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Expressway, Kano-Maradi Railway, and reconstruction of several roads across the north are some of the concrete examples exposing the North’s marginalisation as a misrepresentation of truth.
“Politically, the North is holding the position of the vice president, the number 2 citizen. The Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, the Deputy Senate President, and the National President of the APC are all northerners.”
It stressed that another effort by the Tinubu administration that had an impact on the whole country was the struggle to grant total local government autonomy.
The group emphasised that the historic Supreme Court judgment was secured by the federal government, which compels the direct transfer of funds to local governments.
It said this has begun to yield positive results in some states in which local government functionaries are able to perform their duties, including implementing projects that touch the lives of the grassroots.
The group stated: “In a nutshell, the policies and programs of the Tinubu administration will help the North to realize its full potential.
“It is also important to note that the development of the North does not depend solely on the federal government.”
“Nigeria is a federation with 3 tiers of government. This means that greater responsibility for transforming the North rests squarely on the shoulders of the state governors, local government chairmen, and the political, educated, and business elites of the region.
“With visionary and purposeful leadership at the state and local government levels, the North will have no grounds to cry for marginalization.”
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