EDITORIAL
Nigeria’s Senate President, Godswill Akpabio set Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District on fire by inaugurating projects worth multi-millions of Naira for his constituents last week. The wave of projects – police station, modern school, water works, intensive health care unit, to stretches of roads, among others- has drawn considerable public attention.
In fact, the wave of empowerment programmes- encompassing the distribution of sewing machines, tricycles, grinding mills, cars, scholarships, and small grants intentional to alleviate economic hardship- is commendable.
Unlike his contemporaries in the Hallowed chambers, Akpabio’s bold move has instilled confidence in his constituents and is a clear affirmation ke Nkpo aba (Things are available for all), but the difference lies in the dearth of selfless persons bringing them home.
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Since elections are over, our political office holders must divorce politics from good governance and accountability for the benefit of a larger segment of the constituents. It is a sad commentary that some projects are what some people- party chiefs and party faithful- want to be sited to line up their pockets, not what the people need to solve their endemic challenges, indeed, meet the aspirations of generations yet unborn.
History is replete with projects scattered by Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Ahmadu Bello and Michael Okpara in their respective domains, which are still seen as life-touching and time-tested for generations, not mere handouts that ended like ‘’stomach-infrastructure.’’
The recurring model- where elected officials distribute empowerments to a select group of beneficiaries and site projects at locations chosen by their cronies – does little to address the systemic issues, thus fueling extreme poverty, house help syndrome, and economic exclusion. It is symptomatic of a larger malaise in Nigerian politics: the reliance on tokenism and opportunistic gestures in place of coherent, institutionalised policy responses.
Akwa Ibom North Senatorial District with 10 local government areas faces urgent developmental challenges that require structured, policy-based responses, especially in areas of youth employment, human capacity development, small business support, insecurity, intellectual greasing, and local economic development.
Empowerment in a democratic context should not be an event but a deliberate policy strategy. It must be embedded in a broader legislative vision that is coordinated, scalable, and sustainable. While Senator Akpabio’s initiatives are framed as poverty alleviation measures, they raise a critical question: where is the policy framework underpinning these efforts? Where are the cars donated to some people last year? Are the ad-hoc schemes to different beneficiaries still obtainable or blown away by the wind?
Nigeria’s legislative structure already makes provision for constituency projects, intended to allow lawmakers influence development in their constituencies. But in practice, these projects are often fragmented, opaque, and devoid of performance metrics. Without transparent guidelines on implementation and impact evaluation, these initiatives become susceptible to politicisation and rent-seeking, rather than delivering long-term value.
It is pertinent for us to draw attention to Kenya’s Constituency Development Fund (CDF) underwent reforms that shifted focus from individual handouts to public infrastructure- such as vocational training centres and agricultural processing units—with input from local communities in planning and oversight.
For lawmakers such as Senator Akpabio as number 3 citizen in the country’s power radar- who commands influence as Senate President- the opportunity exists to lead by example through legislation that mainstreams economic empowerment as a matter of policy.
There is need for the nation’s highest law-making body to intervene in key policies by considering a bill establishing MSME hubs in each senatorial district, supported by federal and state funding, offering training, incubation, and low-interest credit access.
Again, we urge the National Assembly to consider amendments to project allocation framework, requiring that constituency empowerment schemes be tied to performance indicators, such as job creation and business survival rates after 12–24 months.
There is absolute need to compile and publish a digital, publicly accessible database of all beneficiaries of empowerment programmes and projects to increase transparency and assess reach of all.
Lawmakers should be legally required to partner with institutions such as the Bank of Industry, SMEDAN, and the Industrial Training Fund, ensuring that interventions align with national development goals.
We call on Senator Akpabio to exploit the activities of Border Community Development Commission by ensuring the construction of rural roads in the agrarian communities for evacuation of agricultural products to the hinterland and other border states.
The development of Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District will not be powered by empowerment fairs or televised donations. It will be driven by evidence-based policies, effective governance, sustainable projects, and a legislature that prioritises systems over sentiments.
It is time for a national conversation about the purpose and design of constituency projects. Legislators must place the collective good above personal aggrandisement, reasons over sentiments, policies over patronage.
