Zamfara N20bn Per LGA Claim: ADC Demands Evidence As Government Defends Lawal’s Projects
Zamfara N20bn Per LGA Claim: ADC Demands Evidence As Government Defends Lawal’s Projects
The controversy over development spending in Zamfara State has taken a new turn after the African Democratic Congress (ADC) challenged Governor Dauda Lawal’s administration to provide verifiable details of projects reportedly worth more than N20 billion in each of the state’s 14 local government areas.
The opposition party’s demand followed Governor Lawal’s recent statement that his administration had delivered infrastructure valued at more than N20 billion in each LGA over the past three years. The claim, if taken across all 14 councils, represents a huge scale of public investment and has now triggered demands for a detailed project-by-project account.
Rather than merely disputing the governor’s claim, the ADC wants the Zamfara Government to place the figures before the public for independent verification. State chairman Kabiru Garba called for details of the projects, including their locations, costs, contractors, commencement dates, completion status and the benefits expected by residents.
The demand has consequently shifted the political conversation from what government says it has spent to what residents can physically identify and verify across the 14 LGAs. The ADC argued that public funds belong to the people and that citizens should be able to determine how such resources have been deployed.
The party also urged the government to publish a comprehensive three-year scorecard covering roads, schools, healthcare facilities, water projects, agriculture, youth and women empowerment, rural electrification, markets and security-related interventions. It specifically called for evidence of projects outside Gusau, arguing that development should be measurable across the wider state.
The Lawal administration, however, has rejected the suggestion that the N20 billion figure is unsupported. The government’s Director-General, Media and Communications, Nuhu Anka, said the governor’s statement was clear, explaining that the figure reflected spending on infrastructure, education, healthcare, security, agriculture and empowerment programmes across the 14 LGAs. He also described the ADC’s demand as politically motivated.
There is already evidence of substantial infrastructure spending in Zamfara. The state’s 2026 budget provides significant funding for road construction and rehabilitation, while major projects include the Gusau-Magami-Dansadau road, the Mallamawa-Bukkuyum-Masamar Mudi corridor and other roads spread across the state. In October, the governor also flagged off a 95-kilometre road project linking communities in Tsafe Local Government Area.
Interestingly, Zamfara already operates a State Project Monitoring System designed to track government projects, with information including project location and percentage of completion. The platform currently lists hundreds of projects across the state, potentially providing another avenue for residents and stakeholders to assess government claims and project delivery.
With the 2027 elections approaching, the dispute over the N20bn-per-LGA claim is likely to become part of the broader debate over performance, transparency and equitable development in Zamfara. For residents, the central question may ultimately be less about political claims and more about whether the projects are visible, completed, functional and delivering measurable benefits to communities across the state.
