Tinubu’s ‘Infrastructure Equity’ report under fire for misleading regional allocations

President Bola Tinubu’s much-publicized “Infrastructure Equity for Every Region” report is drawing sharp criticism after an investigation by SaharaReporters uncovered glaring inconsistencies in how projects were geographically distributed.

The report, released on Monday, claims that 12 key infrastructure projects are underway in the North-West.

However, a closer examination reveals that some of these projects are not located in that region at all. For instance, the 110-kilometre Damaturu Maiduguri road was listed under the North-West, despite both cities being in the North-East Damaturu in Yobe State and Maiduguri in Borno State.

Additionally, the Bama and Dikwa roads, also in Borno, were wrongly attributed to the North-West.

The misclassification doesn’t stop there. Projects like the Lokoja Okene road in Kogi State and the Benue 9th Mile road both situated in the North-Central zone — were also counted as North-West developments.

Even more troubling, several of these projects appeared twice in the report: once under their correct region and again under the North-West, effectively inflating the government’s statistics.

These discrepancies have reignited concerns about regional imbalance in development under Tinubu’s leadership. Although the presidency in April emphasized Tinubu’s commitment to “merit, integrity, geographical spread, and capacity,” critics say the government’s actions tell a different story.

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Senator Ali Ndume of Borno South previously accused the administration of bias, warning that its approach could breach the constitutional principles of federal character.

The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) echoed similar concerns in July.

Alhaji Bashir M. Dalhatu, Wazirin Dutse and ACF Chairman, stated bluntly that the North had been “largely excluded” from significant governance and development processes despite delivering over 64% of Tinubu’s 2023 election votes.

This is not the first time the Renewed Hope Agenda has come under scrutiny.

Earlier reports by SaharaReporters pointed out that both the South-East and North-East have been among the least beneficiaries of the administration’s infrastructure initiatives.

With mounting evidence of padded figures and questionable project classifications, critics are now questioning whether Tinubu’s push for infrastructure equity is truly transformative  or merely a repackaged political slogan.