If anyone is not satisfied with the performance of the Tinubu administration, the Federal Government now says, go and complain to your governor. If you’re hungry and you think the retail prices are beyond your reach, maybe it’s time you asked what your governors do with the excess monies they take home monthly at FAAC. States have never been this buoyant, the FG argues.

In a way, the argument makes sense, but if the Federal Government refuses to hold states to account, how do citizens confront governors who are beyond reproach once ensconced in their garrisons? Some of them are autocratic and you can’t see them. This FG is being clever by half, sidestepping its responsibility for political gains.

This development also reminds one of the attributes of the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). When the kitchen gets too hot, they blame others for their cluelessness.

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio and national Chairman of APC, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, have called on Nigerians to hold the state governors and local government chairmen accountable for effective utilisation of increased revenue allocations. The two senior members of APC spoke separately last week, in Abuja. They challenged states and councils to translate excess revenue into tangible development, improved livelihood and jobs for the people. Good talk.

Yilwatda said: “No governor in Nigeria collects less than three times, up to four times what they used to collect before. Who knows that two years ago, there was a sharing of about N400 billion per month, but today, the last sharing they did was N2.2 trillion. So, they can do more for their people…”

Akpabio confirmed that there is a tremendous increase in the allocation to the states and the Federal Government. He challenged state legislatures to ensure that increased allocation benefits the people.

President Tinubu has repeatedly conspired with Nigerians to hold the governors responsible for underdevelopment in states. In May 2024, when the President met with the leadership of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), at the Villa, he expressed disappointmentin the manner states deploy their resources. He appealed to the elders to summon their governors to consider the needs of the local people, as he is doing his very best to enhance revenue sharing.

The ruling party looks for scapegoats where it is unable to deliver good governance.The party was groomed onblame game and propaganda. They wasted eight years blaming Goodluck Jonathan and the ousted Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

For eight years, Alhaji Lai Mohammed became renown in the art of blame game, on behalf of Muhammadu Buhari and APC. There was nothing the PDP was not responsible for, from Boko Haram to the mismanagement of the Central Bank under Godwin Emefiele and the debts they left behind.

But with the passage of time, it’s no longer fashionable to blame the PDP, yet, somebody must be scapegoated for the economic reforms that don’t benefit millions of citizens, as attested to by the World Bank. It’s no surprise thatthe governors are the ones not doing the right things.

Before President Tinubu was elected, it was politically correct to align himself with the Buhari legacy. He promised to continue from where Buhari handed him the baton; meaning that the regime had done well and there was nothing to change. After he was inaugurated and he discovered that Buhari had ruined the economy, Tinubu began to murmur and complain in whispers. A frontal attack on Buhari’s failures would mean an attack on their party and himself. He also could no longer lay hands on Jonathan because there was nothing new to say.

When facts emerged that Buhari and Emefiele abused the Ways and Means window by printing N2.7 trillion to run government, only Emefiele was arrested for prosecution and persecution for others sins.

It was Adams Oshiomhole, who used to be the chairman of APC and now a senator that summoned courage to state the truth. In August 2023, he blurted: “The government inherited a terrible economic situation. Everybody knows it. The government inherited an economy in which our total national revenue was barely enough to service our debt burden, spending 96 per cent, which is to say, out of every N100,000 Nigeria earns, N96,000 is going to repay debts, to service debts. So, you have only N4,000 left to pay salaries.”

But since Buhari passed on, the government and party owners are careful not to drag his name anyhow. Apart from it being un-African to speak ill of the dead, as they claim, a more critical concern is to carefully manage the Buhari legacy as 2027 beckons.

They say the man’s 11 million votes remain intact. The party leadership is not going to allow any loose-tongued, middle-level salesman to ruin their 11 million votes. In any case, why blame a distant Buhari when governors are there?

It is a good thing the Federal Government is reminding Nigerians to demand accountability from the state governors. A lot of money is being drained from the pockets of Nigerians: fuel subsidy, tariffs and levies. In 2025 alone, approximately N10.347 trillion has been shared among the three tiers of government. September allocation was reported to be N2.103 trillion. Indeed, Nigerians should follow their money and demand how it is deployed in states and local governments.

But the Federal Government should not be allowed to look helpless if the states are misbehaving. Though states are more or less independent, having their own legislatures to appropriate budgets and run their affairs, the Federal Government has its ways and means to checkmate the excesses of the governors.

If President Tinubu is sincerely worried that governors are not deploying allocations for the good of citizens, and their priorities are white elephant projects (disused, underused airports and overhead bridges on dryland), instead of community and farm roads, there are tools at his disposal to caution them. The President may engage them individually, as the number one leader of the country. He could approach them through the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), or reach out to them through their party (APC), for those who belong there, and for those who are on their way. After all, we’re told the plan is to absorb all governors into the APC.

If persuasion fails, the President has the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Crimes Commission (ICPC), to deploy if governors are found misusing their allocations.

The EFCC announced in July that it had commenced investigating 18 sitting governors. Between July and now, political realignments are taking place and opposition governors are abandoning their parties for the APC.

In terms of performance, many governors are confused and distracted. They’re no longer focused on deploying their FAAC allocations to make their people happy. Attention has shifted to 2027 and whether they would remain politically relevant or spend time attending courts over financial crimes. States are now hosting and sponsoring rallies to endorse Mr President for 2027; they’ve abandoned governance. How can the same FG be blaming them?

Governor Duoye Diri of Bayelsa State is at a crossroads. A two-term governor, the man has ditched the PDP but is yet to join APC or ADC. He is floating and people are wondering what’s chasing him?

Whatever it is, his present condition is not conducive to deliver good governance to the citizens of Bayelsa State. The Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has sued the state assembly over plots to impeach him because he didn’t abandon PDP like his principal. Confusion.

Governor Caleb Muftwang of Plateau State also appears confused. He said he is under tremendous pressure to abandon PDP, but that power belongs to the people. No one can say for how long he’s going to hold on to the people’s power. He didn’t say where the pressure was coming from, but from where else?

In response to the FG’s challenge to citizens to hold the governors accountable, one commentator from Imo State wondered how he could hold to account the governor he hardly sees, who is always in Abuja, doing eye-service at the Villa. In other words, his governor is distracted by the same people asking citizens to hold governors accountable.

In Edo State, FAAC allocations that belong to the people were deployed to purchase buses that were branded in the name of Mr President and his ruling party. In Edo State, 2027 campaigns have started but there are no roads to ply the new vehicles.

Monday Okpebholo, the governor, had earlier promised to give the President 2.5 million votes come 2027. He is so overwhelmed by the Presidential miracle that catapulted him to the Government House, Benin City, and is willing to do anything to pay back Mr President. He recently decreed that his appointees, including commissioners must adorn the Tinubu cap for official outings. Is that the sort of governor the FG wants Edo people to hold to account?

Nigerians are bold people. They are not afraid to confront authoritarian and clueless leaders. But since 1999, the political class has conspired to exploit and extort the people in the name of democracy. They’re holding the people down.

Last week in Ogun State, citizens pushed out on X (Twitter) #DapofixOgunRoads, calling the attention of Governor Dapo Abiodun to the deplorable state of roads. But citizens can only complain while governors have their ways.

As for Professor Yilwatda, his advocacy for the state governors to do more for their people is correct. However, his job is to make the APC a political party that responds to the needs of the people, not just feeding the ruling class. The party system must return to the blueprints left by dedicated and selfless party managers of old, for example, the defunct Action Group (AG) and Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN).

Between 1979 and 1983, all UPN states operated the same manual. What you found in Lagos, under Lateef Jakande, was what you got in Bendel State, where Professor Ambrose Alli presided. Education was free across UPN states and other services were handy. The FAAC allocation then was small, but governors and lawmakers did not take their shares abroad to illegally invest in properties. Political parties and politicians are the ones to rescue this democracy, not soldiers. There isn’t much time to continue to mess around!