Questions as Tinubu’s government plans to tell Nigerians his achievements from UK

By KEMI KASUMU

“It is hypocritical for the same ministers who demand sacrifices from ordinary Nigerians, telling them to endure hunger and suffering for future gains, to turn around and embark on a luxury tour of Europe, pretending to promote ‘legacy projects.’ If these projects are so impactful, Nigerians would already be feeling their effects in their homes, communities, hospitals, schools, and markets—not on foreign soil,” Onwubiko stressed.

Pumps of questions are trickling in from Nigerians home and in the Diaspora following report that top members of the Tinubu administration have chosen London, the United Kingdom as a place to reel out the achievements of his two-year old government.

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike; Minister of Works, Dave Umahi; and other senior government officials are said to be traveling to that far away land of the former colonial masters to present the Bola Tinubu administration’s achievements at an international press conference being organized.

The DEFENDER reports that the Tinubu’s government is doing this amidst resolve by many African nations and leaders including the Burkina Faso’s revolutionary President Ibrahim Traore to free themselves from and Africa in general from neo-colonialism making the it a surprise that a country called the giant of thhem all is still treating them the former colonial masters as Lord and Saviour.

Speaking at a briefing in Abuja on Tuesday May 13, 2025, Project Internal Coordinator of the President Bola Tinubu Midterm Legacy Projects Review Committee, Bode Adeyemi, said the event will serve as a platform for ministers, heads of departments, and agency leaders to highlight the administration’s major accomplishments over the past two years.

The event, scheduled for Friday, June 27, 2025, will also feature the official launch of a compendium and website cataloguing legacy projects undertaken by the administration since it assumed office.

Adeyemi said, “President Bola Tinubu’s government has made unprecedented achievements within 24 months despite numerous challenges, including global economic headwinds.”

He added, “We have painstakingly documented these milestones, and it is only fitting that we present this verifiable success story to both Nigerians and the international community.

“All the projects have been compiled into a comprehensive compendium, with a digital version to be launched during the event. We commend the Honourable Ministers, Directors-General, and heads of agencies for their relentless efforts in driving this progress.”

Among the key officials expected to speak at the London event are Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo; Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Gbenga Komolafe; Managing Director of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Usman Osidi; and Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacheous Adedeji.

Also speaking at the Abuja press briefing, Chairman of the APC UK Chapter, Tunde Doherty, described the London conference as a strategic initiative to counter misinformation and present a true picture of governance in Nigeria under Tinubu.

He said, “The Tinubu administration has made significant strides in infrastructure, economic reform, national security, healthcare, aviation, and the digital economy. The fact that both public and private refineries have commenced production under this administration is a landmark achievement.

“Other milestones include the push for local government autonomy, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road, the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, repayment of IMF debts, fuel subsidy removal—which has doubled allocations to states—the enforcement of the rule of law, and improved national security.”

Doherty added that the international community will have the opportunity to assess firsthand the progress Nigeria has made, as told by those directly overseeing the projects.

Nigerians kick

Many questions that people are asking include how a president that should be responsible and accountable to Nigerians chooses to give his scorecard to former colonial masters over 60 years after independence or cannot tell Nigerians what he has done in his two years in office except from far away United Kingdom.

In the meantime, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has criticized the planned international press conference in London by key ministers in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.

The rights group, in a statement on Wednesday May 14, labelled the trip an “extravagant and insensitive public relations jamboree” funded by taxpayers at a time when Nigeria is grappling with severe economic hardship and unresolved domestic crises.

HURIWA’s National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, condemned the Federal Government’s initiative as a “monumental show of irresponsibility, tone-deaf governance, and outright mockery of millions of suffering Nigerians.”

The group vehemently opposed the undertaking, denouncing it as an unconscionable squandering of public funds and an insult to the intelligence of Nigerians enduring the daily struggles of economic hardship, escalating insecurity, widespread unemployment, and failing infrastructure.

“It is both disgraceful and inexcusable that ministers who have failed to communicate transparently with Nigerians at home, failed to provide effective public services, and failed to deliver tangible improvements to the daily lives of citizens, are now jetting off to the UK to tell foreigners fairytales of imaginary success stories,” HURIWA stated.

The organization questioned the rationale behind the London location for such an event. “Is it in London that the Tinubu government suddenly finds Nigerians who need to be told what they have achieved? Or is this just another elitist vanity project to wine and dine with diaspora allies, launder the administration’s image abroad, and suppress the truth about the glaring poverty and failures back home?”

HURIWA further asserted that the press conference is merely a “propaganda-driven public relations stunt intended to whitewash the dismal performance of President Tinubu’s administration.”

The group argued that in barely two years, the administration has implemented “some of the most debilitating policies and anti-people reforms in Nigeria’s recent history.”

“From the reckless removal of fuel subsidies without a social safety net, to the floating of the naira that has devastated the value of the currency, this administration has inflicted needless suffering on Nigerians.

HURIWA emphasized. “Inflation is out of control. Security agencies are overstretched. Hunger, kidnappings, and violent crimes are rampant. Civil servants and pensioners are still owed, while the national debt continues to spiral out of control. These are not achievements to be celebrated abroad but failures to be accounted for at home.”

The rights group also raised concerns about the transparency and budgetary justification of the London trip, asking whether the National Assembly approved the expenditure and if Nigerians were informed of the cost implications.

HURIWA accused the administration of prioritizing propaganda over good governance and using public funds for a publicity campaign with no tangible benefit to the nation.

“It is hypocritical for the same ministers who demand sacrifices from ordinary Nigerians, telling them to endure hunger and suffering for future gains, to turn around and embark on a luxury tour of Europe, pretending to promote ‘legacy projects.’ If these projects are so impactful, Nigerians would already be feeling their effects in their homes, communities, hospitals, schools, and markets—not on foreign soil,” Onwubiko stressed.

HURIWA also criticized the APC UK Chapter Chairman, Tunde Doherty, for suggesting the conference would present the right narrative about the administration, warning against any attempt to suppress the truth and mislead the international community.

“No amount of choreographed press conferences in London can erase the suffering of Nigerians. No glitzy compendium or website will wipe away the anguish of a mother who cannot feed her children, or a farmer who cannot access his fields due to terrorists and bandits. The real narrative is what the world sees on the streets of Nigeria—not what is staged in a Hilton ballroom in London.”