Over the years, there has been a great concern regarding the huge amounts of money spent by the federal government in subsidising petroleum products for Nigerians. The concern stems from acclaimed "economic experts" and other well-meaning Nigerians across the country who are heard advocating for a complete removal of the subsidy and directing the purported amount to other sectors like agriculture, infrastructure, education and job creation.
They argue that the government does not have the money to keep the subsidy alive for Nigerians.
Before former President Muhammadu Buhari left office in 2023, the federal government was already paying close to N1trn monthly for subsidy. This gave birth to mistrust and uncertainty among Nigerians regarding the whereabouts of the subsidy as they were still buying fuels at higher prices. This made Nigerians question if the huge amount budgeted and appropriated for the subsidy was well accounted for.
Again, in 2016, an "expert" who is a leader and a revered figure in Northern Nigeria, was quoted to have advised Buhari to "firmly and unequivocally eliminate fuel subsidies". He believed the government did not have the money to keep the subsidies alive.
Not long ago, the federal government approved a 300 per cent increase in electricity tariff to commence immediately. This is coming at a period when Nigerians are grasping for breath and recovering from the government's harsh economic policies despite the epileptic power supply across the country.
There is no doubt the recent 0.5 per cent cybersecurity levy imposed on banking transactions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will further impoverish Nigerians.
But in all these, do our state governors have a role to play?
I believe the governors can help a lot given the huge amounts of money generated internally in their states, as well as the increased monthly allocation by the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).
A report has it that FAAC disbursed N2trn to the three tiers of government for the month of April, 2024, and the states got five per cent of the amount. Do we care to ask them what they do with their share?
From the above statistics, it is evident that as much as we hold the federal government accountable for good governance, the state governors should also be held accountable. We must ask them what they are doing to improve primary healthcare and primary education. We must also ask them what they are doing to prevent hoarding and exploitation of Nigerians by fuel attendants. We must ask them what they've done to create a conducive atmosphere for businesses to thrive in their states. We must as well ask them what effort they've made to alleviate poverty and suffering for their citizens.
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Nigerian governors have all that they need in their arsenal to accelerate development in their states and improve the livelihood of their citizens. It is, however, clear that only a few of them are ready to work under every given circumstance. Most of them hide under the shade of debt to mask their failure and mediocrity.
We keep on criticising and calling on the federal government to provide basic amenities which are within the ambit of the duties of our governors. Nigerians should hold their governors accountable and demand transparency and accountability in governance. Nigerian governors have the resources and authority to drive development in their states; they must show this or posterity will not be kind to those who fail to deliver.
Sani Bello Hamza is a law student at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State, and can be reached through [email protected].
