*“Nigeria Running on Less Than 10 Per Cent Capital Budget Implementation Since 2025 Is a Pity” — Ibarapakan Slams APC Presidency*

Member representing Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency, Hon. Dr. Anthony Adebayo Adepoju, has reeled out his scorecard on the invitation of ace broadcaster, Mayoor Isaac Brown, on the popular Political Circuit, a programme aired on Fresh 105.9FM.

Featuring on the programme on Saturday, February 21, 2026, Adepoju reiterated the position he earlier made on Arise News on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, regarding the real-time electronic transmission of election results, insisting that the All Progressives Congress (APC), deliberately refused to do what Nigerians demanded.

The opposition lawmaker declared that for the first time in Nigeria’s history, a ruling party was openly admitting failure by claiming that the country lacked sufficient electricity coverage and mobile network infrastructure to support electronic transmission of election results. He argued that if the situation were reversed, the APC led Federal Government would not hesitate to defend the same inadequacies it was now presenting as excuses before Nigerians, rhetorically asking the defenders of the government how they feel with the admission of the same APC led government that Nigeria is that bad.

Adepoju maintained that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) remains the party to beat, stressing that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, remained expelled from the PDP, alongside his associates. He added that no political party in Nigeria was immune to internal crises, but expressed confidence that the PDP would overcome its present challenges.

“Wike and his cohorts will soon meet their Waterloo, as the party remains confident that the Appeal Court will rule in our favour. The Supreme Court has already clarified in its judgment that party affairs cannot be determined by the courts. It is on this premise that we believe the apex court will base its decision if the matter proceeds to the Supreme Court after the Appeal Court’s judgment,” Hon. Adepoju said.

According to him, the PDP in Oyo State remained united and formidable under the leadership of Governor Seyi Makinde. He dismissed speculations that the governor was planning to defect to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing such claims as unfounded. The lawmaker noted that governance and politics had their distinct timings, querying whether every meeting between President Bola Tinubu and Makinde should automatically be interpreted as a move to join the APC. He assured the public that any information suggesting Makinde’s defection should be disregarded.

Referencing a statement by Hon. Olamijuwon Akala, who represents Ogbomosho North, Ogbomosho South and Orire Federal Constituency, that he executed only one project in the entire 2025 fiscal year, the programme anchor, Isaac Brown asked Hon. Adepoju to present his own 2025 scorecard. In response, the lawmaker said if such a statement had emanated from an opposition member, it would have been misconstrued. He commended Akala for his candour and said Nigerians needed to be properly educated on the fact that the country had effectively operated less than 10 per cent capital budget implementation since 2025.

Hon. Adepoju said he would not claim superiority over colleagues who had been unable to execute projects in their constituencies since 2025. He explained that what had worked for him was consistent engagement with contractors, persuading them to execute awarded projects within his constituency with the assurance that they would be paid. He disclosed that projects ranging from the construction of blocks of classrooms across communities in Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North, installation of solar street lights, purchase of tractors to ease farmland preparation for farmers, construction of boreholes across the constituency. Others are the upgrade of Igangan Town Hall, the construction of a public library, the distribution of educational materials to public school students and even training and sensitization programs are yet to be paid for by the federal government of Nigeria.

The lawmaker lamented that electricity remained the most persistent challenge confronting the Ibarapa zone for over a decade. He said he took time to study the issues and ensured that necessary interventions were captured in the 2025 budget. According to him, upon confirming that the items he facilitated to address the electricity problem were included in the budget, he announced that constituents would begin to witness tangible improvements within six months. However, he said the six-month period elapsed without full implementation of the 2025 budget by the Federal Government of Nigeria. He accused the government of underestimating the intelligence of Nigerians, adding that many citizens were unaware of the depth of the crisis under the APC-led administration.

The Ibarapa-born technocrat cum politician stated that just as he had persuaded contractors to undertake unfunded projects domiciled in various Ministries, Departments and Agencies for his constituency, he would have adopted the same approach for the procurement of electrical infrastructure. Unfortunately, he said, the project had not been awarded due to lack of funding even after being advertised under the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, where it was domiciled in the budget.

Corroborating Akala’s claim of limited project execution nationwide, Ibarapakan said the situation was not peculiar to a few lawmakers but widespread across the federation. He noted that contractors were increasingly reluctant to continue under the model he had adopted. He listed projects undertaken in Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North to include the procurement of tractors for farmers, construction of a public library, classroom blocks across communities, motorised boreholes, upgrade of Igangan Town Hall, construction of lawn tennis and basketball courts, distribution of school materials to thousands of public school students, construction of an ICT centre at Ogboja High School, empowerment programmes for youths, women and widows, all of which, he said, were executed with no payment from the federal government yet.

He lamented that many of the contractors borrowed funds from banks to execute the projects, plunging themselves into heavy financial liabilities in anticipation of government reimbursement. He disclosed that, on several occasions, the aggrieved contractors staged protests, with some of them carrying symbolic coffins to the premises of the Federal Ministry of Finance to dramatise their frustration over prolonged non-payment.

The Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Character stated that it was no longer news that the 2025 budget had effectively been rolled into 2026. He alleged that the first “joker” played by the government was the announcement that only 30 per cent of the 2025 capital budget would be implemented, with 70 per cent deferred to 2026. He said the presidency had earlier indicated that the life cycle of the 2025 budget would lapse in March 2025, a decision he expressed rested constitutionally with the National Assembly. According to him, the government later shifted the implementation window to November 2026, yet no funds had been disbursed for the purported 30 per cent capital implementation. He added that no ministry had achieved up to 10 per cent capital budget performance since 2025, despite the removal of fuel subsidy, the devaluation of the naira and other harsh economic reforms imposed on Nigerians.

In response to a question on how the government was able to give a lot of money to states and not take care of their responsibilities. He answered that the percentage sharing formula from FAAC had not changed, so as the states are getting more funding, the federal government is even getting way more than before so “why are the states working and the federal government not working?”.

The lawmaker said it was the responsibility of Nigerians to continue holding the government accountable, accusing the administration of showing disregard for key institutions. He asserted that many APC lawmakers were privately dissatisfied with the presidency but restrained by party loyalty from openly confronting the government.

Among other educational intervention programmes by Hon. Adepoju highlighted during the interview were the nationally recognised One-Day Rep initiative, which he said had significantly boosted academic excellence in his constituency, free holiday lessons, scholarships for outstanding tertiary institution students, and the provision of instructional materials to public schools, among others.

Hassan Adesodi Olaoniye
Special Adviser to Hon. Adebayo Adepoju
(Media and Publicity)
February 21, 2026