President Bola Tinubu has criticised state governors for prioritising the construction of flyovers over more pressing infrastructure needs despite the significant increase in federal allocations to states since his administration came into office.

The President made the remarks on Thursday while receiving a delegation of traditional rulers from Oyo State, led by the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Tinubu said many governors now receive substantially higher monthly allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) but are failing to channel the additional resources into projects that directly improve the lives of citizens.

“They are taking four to five times their money. Nobody is borrowing money to pay salaries now. Pensioners are receiving their pay, and they should do more instead of building flyovers where there is no significant traffic. They should build roads and transport arteries that will enhance the quality of life and improve access for security agencies,” the President said.

Since the removal of the petrol subsidy in 2023, allocations to states have risen sharply, providing state governments with significantly higher revenues.

Tinubu urged the traditional rulers to engage their respective governors on the need to prioritise people-centred infrastructure and prudent use of public resources.

“You need to help us communicate to these governors. Today, the cost of operations is high, but the money we are pushing to the states is far more than what was available in the past,” he said.

The Olubadan, who served as Governor of Oyo State between 2003 and 2007, was in office during Tinubu’s second term as Governor of Lagos State.

Security Gains

The President also briefed the monarchs on the Federal Government’s security efforts, saying recent operations had recorded significant successes against banditry, terrorism and kidnapping, including the rescue of abducted victims in Oyo State.

He disclosed that the Nigerian Army had been expanded from eight to 12 divisions to improve operational efficiency and reduce response time in combating insurgents and other criminal groups.

Tinubu added that the government was strengthening the forest guard system to enable security personnel pursue criminals operating from forested areas rather than limiting the initiative to wildlife conservation.

Reiterating his administration’s stance against negotiating with kidnappers, the President said the government would neither pay ransom nor release detained suspects in exchange for abducted victims.

“We refused to pay ransom. These criminals wanted us to release members of their gangs already in detention. That was one of their conditions, apart from the money they demanded. We said no deal,” he said.

Tinubu also linked the country’s security challenges to growing instability in the Sahel region, particularly in Mali, Burkina Faso and the Niger Republic, noting that developments in those countries had increased pressure on Nigeria’s security architecture.