President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Economic Affairs, Tope Fasua, says life is getting better for Nigeria’s poorest people as the Federal Government sends more money to states and local governments.
Fasua spoke during an interview with Seun Okinbaloye on Channels Television on Sunday while defending the Tinubu administration’s handling of the economy and poverty.
He said the fight against poverty starts at the local government level, which is why Tinubu has pushed for local government autonomy. He added that state governments are now in a stronger financial position because they receive more funding.
Fasua also said the days when civil servants went unpaid for six, 12 or even 18 months are over. He added that pensioners now receive their payments more regularly.
He said sending more funds to states and local governments is important because that is where salaries are paid and where government spending has the biggest effect on vulnerable Nigerians.
Fasua maintained that conditions for very poor Nigerians have improved compared to the past.
He also said reducing poverty requires proper documentation of every household, pointing to China’s poverty eradication programme as an example. According to him, the Federal Government cannot do this alone and must rely on state and local governments.
Fasua said the increased funding for subnational governments would improve lives and also boost Tinubu’s chances of winning re-election in 2027. He added that the administration’s economic record and the impact of government actions at the state and local levels would shape Tinubu’s expected re-election bid.
He said, “The solution to poverty, really, that I was talking about is actually at the local government level, and that’s the reason why the president has advocated for local government autonomy and has also ensured that the states are a lot more powerful now in terms of the funding that they’re getting. And I mentioned to you the fact that, you know, those days when civil servants would be owed 18 months, 12 months, six months, it’s gone.
“Pensioners are getting their money a lot, and I think that’s where it matters. And of course, opposition will think that it’s a government that actually pushes finances to the state and the local government, okay, that ensures that salaries are paid on time and the most vulnerable part of our population actually gets something. So I’m saying that, look, I can tell you, I can tell you that, honestly, for the very poor people in this country, the situation is getting better and perhaps better than it used to be, honestly.
“Because if you are raising money to local government and to state government, that is where it’s at. But actually, we cannot go and give the local man—let me tell you, the lessons learned from the China Poverty Eradication Programme, what they did was to get documentation on every household. So if you really want to solve the poverty problem, you are talking about getting documentation on each household.
“The federal government knows that you cannot do that; you can only do that through the local government, through the state government. And so these monies that have been pushed to them are what are going to win the election for us. I have no doubt that Bola Ahmed Tinubu is coming back in 2027 anyway.”
