The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has voiced strong disappointment with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, alleging significant neglect and marginalization of the North despite the region’s substantial support in the 2023 general elections.
During an interactive session with federal government officials in Kaduna, Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Chairman of the ACF Board, outlined a range of critical issues plaguing the North. These include escalating insecurity, insufficient agricultural support, dilapidated infrastructure, poor electricity supply, and neglect in the education and healthcare sectors.
Dalhatu lamented what he described as an “alarming indifference” to the region’s concerns, despite repeated engagements with the Presidency and key stakeholders. He highlighted that the North is grappling with “unprecedented levels of violence,” with insurgent groups proliferating and attacks becoming more lethal.
A major point of contention for the ACF is the federal government’s allocation to agriculture, which remains below 5% of the total budget. This figure falls “far short of the 25% target set by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),” according to Dalhatu. Concerns also extend to the development of transportation infrastructure, electricity supply, education, and healthcare.
“It has to be stated, and I hope this is self-evident, that Northern Nigeria has related to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu with enthusiasm, accommodation and good will,” Dalhatu stated. He pointed out that “Northerners went out en masse on the 25th of February, 2023, and cast their ballots for Bola Tinubu. In the event, 5.6 million out of the total 8.8 million votes he got (or 64%), came from the North.”
However, he expressed dismay that “two years into the four-year tenure of President Tinubu, the feeling among the people of the North is, to put it mildly, completely mixed.” Dalhatu suggested that those who did not support Tinubu initially are now attempting to “push a wedge between him and the North.”
“We can not pretend not to observe that President Tinubu’s budget priorities, his infrastructural projects, his appointments and other executive actions, have, over the last two years, largely sidelined Northern Nigeria,” Dalhatu asserted. He further added that “nothing or little is being done to address the major issues of concern to the North.”
The ACF chairman emphasized insecurity as the region’s paramount concern, noting that “this crisis shows no signs of abating. The insurgent groups continue to multiply, their attacks becoming more deadly.” He warned that “unless the government takes decisive, strong, audacious and sustained measures, including the ones that address its root causes, particularly joblessness among the youth and deepening poverty, the insecurity crisis in Northern Nigeria can hardly ever be contained.”
Dalhatu urged President Tinubu to demonstrate a stronger commitment to addressing the region’s challenges, including increasing funding for critical sectors and implementing policies that foster economic development. The ACF has consistently criticized the Tinubu administration for what it perceives as a lack of inclusivity and a failure to address the specific needs of Northern Nigeria.
