The recent statement by Minister of Information and National Orientation Mohammed Idris paints a picture of rescue, but for ordinary Nigerians, the real question is how?
Development Diaries reports that Minister Idris recently stated that the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu saved no fewer than 27 states from economic collapse.
According to the minister, before Tinubu assumed office on 29 May, 2023, many states were struggling to meet basic obligations, including the payment of workers’ salaries, and President Tinubu came into office with a clear plan, because the reforms he initiated have stabilised state finances.
So, states today are earning almost three times what they used to receive.
While the minister’s statement paints a picture of rescue, for ordinary Nigerians, the real question is saved how, and saved into what?
If 27 states were truly on the brink, Nigerians deserve answers that can be verified, tracked, and enforced, not motivational speaking.
Nigeria’s subnational public finance and accountability system is failing, and the real issue is whether state governments convert increased inflows into paid salaries and pensions on time, primary healthcare and schools that function, safer communities, reliable water and basic services.
A state does not ‘avoid collapse’ because Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) numbers rise, but it avoids collapse when it can meet basic obligations and show citizens where the money went.
There is credible evidence that FAAC distributions and state receipts rose in the reform period. For example, for September 2025, the federal finance ministry’s FAAC communiqué shows states received N727.17 billion in that month alone.
A longer window indicates that state governments received about N6.713trn from January to November 2025. So yes, the ‘more money is flowing’ part is plausible, but the minister’s claim still raises hard questions.
The part about ‘more money flowing’ is not hard to accept, but increased inflow is only half of the story. The other half is what happens after the money arrives.
The problem has always been weak accountability, poor tracking, and little public explanation of how funds are spent.
Now, without a clear definition and a published list of those states, the claim remains political talk, not something citizens can check.
If the government can boldly say 27 states were saved, then the government should also boldly name those states and show the records.
Another hard question is, if states are now earning almost three times more, why are strikes, salary arrears, and service failures still common?
The truth is that more revenue can still pass through a leaking system. Rising inflation, bigger wage bills, debt repayments, and inflated contracts can swallow the extra money without improving services.
This is why civil society groups keep asking governors to show exactly how ‘subsidy savings’ and FAAC increases are being spent, because transparency becomes more important when revenue rises, not less.
There is also the risk of giving all the credit to ‘reforms’ without separating other factors like fuel subsidy removal, changes in oil revenue, VAT, and currency issues which all affect what FAAC shares to states.
But these macro changes do not automatically make state governments more responsible or efficient. A state can receive a windfall and still mismanage it, so the real test is not whether reforms increased revenue, but whether states improved how they manage public money.
This is where citizens and institutions must act. Citizens should demand that the Federal Ministry of Information publish the list of the 27 states, define what ‘economic collapse’ means, and show the salary arrears position before and after May 2023.
Nigerians should track their state’s FAAC receipts against budget releases and audited accounts, file FOI requests asking for details of wage awards, pension payments, health and education spending, and copy their State House of Assembly Public Accounts Committee.
Communities can start simple service scorecards by checking one clinic, one school, and one water source and comparing conditions with the money reportedly received.
At the same time, the government must publish a clear fiscal distress dashboard, make state transparency a condition for any special support, hold public hearings on FAAC inflows versus outcomes, and audit and publish how windfall revenues are spent.
When officials say ‘stabilised finances’, citizens should calmly say ‘show the salaries, show the clinics, show the schools, and show the audited accounts’.
In the end, even if the minister’s claim is true, it sets only a low bar, because ‘avoiding collapse’ is not success; it is the minimum expected of any government.
Photo source: FMINO Nigeria
