By Bukar Mohammed, Kano
A concerned citizen who refuses to keep quiet
It is becoming fashionable for political commentators and influencers like Sunday Dare and Osigwe Omo-Ikirodah to peddle curated narratives about Northern Nigeria under the guise of “facts” and “national balance.” But truth is not measured by how loud it is spoken, it is anchored in lived reality.
In his recent podcast, Omo-Ikirodah attempted to debunk what he calls “northern grievances,” listing projects like the dualisation of Kano-Katsina roads, Yola power upgrades, agriculture hubs in Zamfara, and the Maiduguri airport modernization as evidence of a thriving Tinubu administration in the North. Sunday Dare echoed similar sentiments.
Many of these projects were initiated under President Buhari. Some are stalled, some are partially executed, and many have been abandoned or recycled under new titles for optics. The Abuja–Kaduna–Zaria–Kano highway, arguably the most strategic northern project, remains a national embarrassment, riddled with delays and suffering despite fanfare about its dualisation.
The so-called “over 40 federal projects” in the North amount to a misleading compilation of repackaged efforts, devoid of context or completion status. What the North needs is not PR gimmicks, but impact on ground, in real time.
Beyond infrastructure, there is a dangerous undertone now creeping into public discourse that the deaths and violence in Northern Nigeria are largely Christian-targeted. This is not only misleading but highly divisive and inflammatory. The North, with its majority Muslim population suffers daily from banditry, terrorism, mass abductions, and systemic neglect. Whether Muslim or Christian, the Northern victim is first a Nigerian abandoned, unheard, and misrepresented.
Rather than gloss over the pain with broadcasted soundbites and political theatre, what Nigeria needs is honest reflection, especially from those entrusted with power or privileged with platforms.
It is time the North found its voice.
It is time we called out abandonment disguised as progress.
It is time we said: enough with false balance and selective storytelling.
To Sunday Dare and Osigwe Omo-Ikirodah, truth is not what is trending; truth is what the people are living. No amount of studio production or editorial packaging will erase the potholed roads, under-resourced health centers, uncompleted power grids, or the dozens of communities left to fend for themselves.
Let development be measured not in promises or press releases but in completion, impact, and accountability.
Until then, we reject these narratives that use the North as a pawn while its people suffer in silence.
BUKAR MOHAMMED, KANO
A concerned citizen who refuses to keep quiet
Source Links:
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Sunday Dare lists FG projects in north, rejects Kwankwaso’s claims of neglect under Tinubu:
https://www.thecable.ng/sunday-dare-lists-fg-projects-in-north-rejects-kwankwasos-claims-of-neglect-under-tinubu/ -
North-Side Realities: Tinubu’s Northern Projects Shatter Kwankwaso’s Tribal Claims (Video):
https://bushradiogist.com/north-side-realities-tinubus-northern-projects-shatter-kwankwasos-tribal-claimsvideo/
