Adesanya-Davies: Nigerians Must Demand Accountability From Abuja, States, LGs

Professor Funmilayo Adesanya-Davies has called on Nigerians to expand the scope of political accountability beyond the Federal Government, insisting that governors, local government authorities, legislators and public institutions must also account for resources entrusted to them.

Adesanya-Davies made the call in a response to Dr. Azowue O. Emmanuel’s latest Naked Truth Series: CVXV, titled “Beyond Abuja: Who Really Should We Hold Responsible for Our Suffering?”

While commending Emmanuel for challenging the tendency to blame virtually every national problem on the Federal Government, she said Nigerians must go beyond simply redistributing blame and instead demand evidence-based accountability from every level of government.

“Dr. Azowue, you are right—but let us take it further,” she stated.

According to her, the key questions should not merely be who is to blame, but who has constitutional responsibility, who received the resources, what the money was meant for, what was actually done, who benefited and where the evidence is.

‘Look Beyond Abuja, But Do Not Look Away From Abuja’

Adesanya-Davies said Nigerians must scrutinise the performance of the three tiers of government, noting that responsibilities for roads, healthcare, education, water, sanitation, rural development and other public services are distributed across different levels of government.

She maintained that governors must answer for state responsibilities, local government authorities for grassroots services and legislators for their constitutional and constituency functions.

At the same time, she stressed that the Federal Government must remain accountable for matters within its jurisdiction.

She therefore proposed replacing the slogan “Beyond Abuja” with “Beyond Blame: Accountability Everywhere.”

Governors Must Account for Public Funds
The professor urged citizens to demand detailed explanations from state governments on public revenue and expenditure.

She said citizens should ask how much their states received, what was budgeted, what was released, what was spent, which projects were executed, the cost of each project, who the contractors were and whether the projects were independently verified as completed.

“A governor should not be shielded from scrutiny simply because the President is unpopular,” she said, adding that the President should equally not be shielded because a governor has failed.

Local Governments Must Come Under Greater Scrutiny

Adesanya-Davies particularly supported greater scrutiny of local government administration, arguing that ordinary Nigerians interact more directly with local infrastructure and services than with the Presidential Villa.

She said citizens should demand records on funds allocated to local authorities and ask what was delivered, who benefited and where the relevant records could be found.

She also called for members of the National and State Assemblies to be subjected to evidence-based scrutiny throughout their tenure rather than only during election periods.

According to her, democratic representation should be measured by constitutional performance, legislative effectiveness, oversight, advocacy and demonstrable service to constituents.

‘Tinubu Must Also Answer for Tinubu’s Responsibilities’

The professor stressed that holding state and local governments accountable should not be interpreted as an attempt to exonerate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu or the Federal Government.

She said the President, as head of the Federal Executive, remains responsible for federal matters, including national economic policy, federal institutions, national security, monetary and fiscal coordination, federal infrastructure and other responsibilities constitutionally assigned to the Federal Government.

“We cannot let Abuja escape accountability merely because we have discovered that our governors and local governments also have questions to answer,” she said.

Nigeria Needs ‘Citizen Auditors’

Adesanya-Davies called on Nigerians to move from being seasonal voters to becoming active citizens who monitor public budgets, track projects, demand procurement information, document abandoned projects and use lawful democratic mechanisms to seek accountability.

She urged Nigerians to ask what their President, governor, senator, House of Representatives member, State Assembly member and local government chairman had achieved, as well as what happened to the resources entrusted to each of them.

No Selective Accountability

The professor warned against applying different standards to politicians based on political party, ethnicity, religion, region or personal loyalty.

She said accountability should have no political, ethnic, religious or geographical boundaries.

“If a federal official fails, demand answers. If a governor fails, demand answers. If a legislator fails, demand answers. If a local government authority fails, demand answers. If an institution fails, demand answers,” she stated.

Adesanya-Davies concluded that Nigeria’s governance crisis is multidimensional and cannot be attributed to one office, political party or level of government.

She urged Nigerians to look beyond Abuja, but also into state and local governments, constituencies, ministries, departments and agencies, public budgets, contracts, abandoned projects and public accounts.

“Dr. Azowue O. Emmanuel has opened the conversation. Professor Adesanya-Davies says: Let us now take the conversation to every corner of Nigeria,” she said.

“Beyond Abuja. Beyond party politics. Beyond blame. Accountability everywhere.”