Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has faulted the Federal Government for including the ongoing Ibadan Circular Road project in its list of achievements, insisting that the state government is solely responsible for its execution.
Makinde expressed his displeasure in a statement shared on his official campaign account on X on Friday, alongside images of two pages from The Punch newspaper featuring an advertorial highlighting federal government projects across Nigeria.
The advertorial listed the 110-kilometre Ibadan Circular Road among the projects, describing it as a “state-led” initiative.
Reacting, the governor maintained that the project was entirely financed and executed by the Oyo State Government, stressing that the Federal Government had made no financial contribution or direct intervention.
He stated that the project was initiated and was being implemented under his administration, urging the Federal Government to stop presenting it as part of its accomplishments.
The governor also drew parallels between the development and the ongoing upgrade of the Ibadan Airport, which he alleged the Federal Government had similarly attempted to associate with its achievements.
Makinde accused the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, of previously claiming that the Federal Government provided N50 billion to support the airport upgrade.
He also mentioned Akin Alabi, a member of the House of Representatives, among those he accused of taking credit for the project.
According to the governor, both the Circular Road and the airport upgrade are being executed entirely by the Oyo State Government without financial assistance from the Federal Government.
He called on the Federal Government and its representatives to desist from what he described as repeated attempts to claim ownership of projects funded and undertaken by his administration.
The governor’s comments have brought renewed attention to the issue of credit attribution for infrastructure projects jointly or independently undertaken by different levels of government.
