By Tanimu Yakubu, Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation
The Lagos Illusion
The viral chart bundles together national infrastructure—federal highways, coastal transport corridors, and legacy roads—and labels them “Lagos-only projects.” By that logic, the Kano–Maiduguri expressway could be called a “Maiduguri-only project.” It is a sleight of hand that ignores the truth: these are national arteries, not local trophies.
When disaggregated, Lagos’ actual exclusive projects—airport fencing, Carter Bridge works, localized upgrades—stand at about ₦1.2 trillion. The much-touted ₦2.7 trillion are federal highways and transport links that pass through Lagos but serve the entire federation. In short, Lagos is not swallowing the budget; Nigeria is being stitched together through infrastructure.
The Northwest Reality
The real numbers paint a starkly different picture:
– North West: ₦5.97 trillion (over 40% of all approvals)
– South South: ₦2.41 trillion
– North Central: ₦1.13 trillion
– South East: ₦407 billion
– North East: ₦400 billion
– South West (excluding Lagos): ₦604 billion
In other words, the Northwest—not Lagos—holds the lion’s share. It is the President’s single largest beneficiary.
Correcting Propaganda
The viral infographic exaggerates Lagos’ share while downplaying the North’s gains. To contrast, here is the misleading versus corrected framing:
Figure 2: Side-by-side comparison of misleading vs corrected framing.
Figure 3: Corrected neutral framing of FEC approvals.
Tinubu’s Northwest Compact
Let us speak plainly: without the Northwest, there would be no Tinubu presidency. The President knows this. He has not forgotten, nor has he been ungrateful.
Consider the Kaduna Power Plant (255MW). Conceived under the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, it languished in abandonment for years. Today, under President Tinubu, it is being revived and put back on track. This is not just a power project—it is a symbol of continuity, respect, and reward for the North.
Add to that the Kaduna–Kano expressway, the Kano–Maiduguri highway, the Sokoto–Illela corridor, and massive investments in education and security infrastructure. These are not footnotes. They are the backbone of a deliberate Northwest-first investment strategy.
This is not neglect; it is recognition. It is gratitude made concrete, kilometre by kilometre, megawatt by megawatt.
Propaganda vs. Progress
The danger of the viral infographic is not just statistical error—it is deliberate incitement. It pits Lagos against Kano, Southwest against Northwest, as though one region’s progress must mean another’s exclusion. That is not budgeting. That is blackmail.
But Nigerians are wiser. The records show:
– Lagos is Nigeria’s commercial hub, rightly upgraded.
– The Northwest is Nigeria’s electoral fortress, richly rewarded.
– Every region receives its share, because Tinubu budgets for one economy, one country, one people.
Conclusion: Records, Not Rumors
History will not remember the viral graphics. It will remember the farmers in Katsina whose produce reaches markets in Lagos, the power that lights up Kaduna through Yar’Adua’s plant, revived by Tinubu, and the schools and hospitals springing up across Sokoto and Zamfara.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not marginalized the North. He has trusted it, invested in it, and rewarded it.
That is the record. That is the fact. That is the truth.
And no infographic, however colorful, can bury it.
