Nigeria's Political Elites Face Questions Over Public Power

Associate Professor Babayo Sule called House of Representatives Appropriations Committee chairman Abubakar Bichi’s birthday celebration extravagant and opulent, given widespread poverty, including in Bichi’s constituency. Sule said newspaper advertisements could cost a substantial sum, but the ads alone didn’t prove anyone sought a favour or that public money paid for the celebration.

Who Controls Public Spending

In an October 17, 2026, Daily Trust interview with Dalhatu Liman, Sule argued that political leaders’ actions must stay connected to the realities facing the masses. He opposed the constituency project system, saying the executive should primarily carry out development projects. The constitution assigns the legislature duties such as making laws, amending existing laws and overseeing the executive, he said. Sule called for a clear division of responsibilities among the three arms of government.

A chairman of an Appropriation Committee in either the Senate or House of Representatives can wield considerable influence, Sule said. The chairman examines proposed federal spending and budget proposals from ministries, departments and agencies. Before approval, the committee can request explanations and recommend changes. The role also offers access to government institutions, opportunities for negotiation and political engagement, bargaining power over constituency projects and allocations, and national visibility. Still, a chairman’s influence over particular allocations depends on the legislative process, other lawmakers’ positions and the executive’s proposals, Sule said.

Bichi chaired the House Committee on Works from 2019 to 2023, overseeing federal infrastructure programmes that included roads, bridges and other public works. Sule said that experience likely helped Bichi form relationships with federal agencies, political colleagues and infrastructure stakeholders before joining the Appropriation Committee.

Reports have linked Bichi to housing, school improvements, road construction and other infrastructure, Sule said. A June 2026 report said Bichi paid approximately N40 million in tuition or registration fees for 2,423 students at the Federal College of Education (Technical), Bichi, for the first semester of the 2025/2026 academic session. Sule praised the initiative. A January 2026 report described an inspection of housing, school improvements and local infrastructure. Other reports associated Bichi with skills acquisition centres, an e-library and a mini stadium in Bichi.

Projects, Poverty and Accountability

Constituency projects can include interventions Sule considered flamboyant or non-beneficial, such as stadiums in villages, conference centres and poorly equipped skills acquisition centres. He cited former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s reported description of constituency projects as diverting resources meant for the executive. Former President Goodluck Jonathan had also voiced concerns about waste of public resources, Sule said. Former President Muhammadu Buhari reportedly said more than n2 trillion had gone to constituency projects between 1999 and his administration.

Money reportedly spent on Bichi’s celebration might have supported education, poverty reduction or empowerment initiatives, Sule said. Public officials’ sources of wealth, he added, should be assessed against legitimate earnings, salaries, allowances and entitlements. But claims that public money paid for the celebration would need evidence.

Sule recalled the 2016 budget-padding controversy. Abdulmumin Jibrin, a former chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, alleged irregularities in the National Assembly’s budget process and lawmakers subsequently suspended him. Former lawmaker Gudaji Kazaure also made allegations about questionable activities in the National Assembly, which Sule said called for appropriate investigation. Sule urged officials to establish clear procedures, document decisions, provide effective oversight and make information accessible to the public. Allegations of bribery, improper influence or budget manipulation should face investigation, he said.

Votes and Political Alliances

In an October 17, 2026, essay, Stephanie Shaakaa questioned the roles of Nyesom Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance and Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party in President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign machinery. The three became coordinators for the FCT and Rivers State, Anambra State, and Osun State, respectively. Shaakaa wrote, “Different party cards, same pocket.”

Shaakaa drew a line between cooperating with a president on security, infrastructure and development and helping him win another term. She asked what achievements had convinced the three politicians that Tinubu deserved another term, which shortcomings they would accept and what they expected a second term to accomplish. Their participation shouldn’t automatically count as a formal endorsement by their parties, she said. Supporters deserved to know whether the arrangements reflected personal choices or a broader shift in the opposition.

Opposition parties should scrutinise government, expose failures and offer voters another course, Shaakaa said. A campaign council can’t establish presidential performance or confer a mandate, she wrote; only voters can give that mandate. As 2027 approached, she said Wike, Soludo and Adeleke, their parties and the ruling APC had a duty to explain their positions and defend Tinubu’s record. Shifting alliances may be part of democracy, she concluded, but voters’ loss of faith in meaningful change poses a crisis of trust.

Constituents should use peaceful, lawful and constitutional means to hold representatives accountable, Sule said. Voters should keep watch on representatives after elections and demand explanations. He called for impartial investigations, conducted with due process, into constituency-project expenditure, delivery, accounting and procurement.