The decision of Nigeria’s First Lady Oluremi Tinubu to raise donations from Nigerians for the completion of the National Library has stirred mixed reactions, and rightly so.
Development Diaries reports that to mark her birthday, Tinubu appealed to well-wishers to donate towards completing the multi-billion-naira library project, describing the contributions as the ‘best birthday gift’ she could receive.
She recently announced that so far, Nigerians have donated over N20 billion, and more is still coming in.
While her passion for education is commendable, the reality is that this project has been abandoned for decades because of government negligence.
Asking citizens to donate towards a library that should be fully funded by the federal government exposes the failure of successive administrations to prioritise education infrastructure.
For many Nigerians, this fundraising move feels like shifting the government’s core duty onto the people, despite taxpayers already contributing to the national budget.
The National Library, first conceived under the Shehu Shagari administration, has remained uncompleted for over 40 years.
This is not due to lack of resources, but mismanagement and poor planning.
In a country where billions are budgeted annually for recurrent expenditure and political offices, it is difficult to justify why a central institution for learning and research is still not standing.
The current fundraising only reinforces the impression that education is not treated as a national priority. As critics have argued, it is the government’s constitutional duty to provide such facilities, not the responsibility of private citizens.
This moment should therefore serve as a wake-up call for the Federal Ministry of Education, the National Library Board, and other relevant agencies.
It is their responsibility to ensure the project is completed and operational. Instead of relying on donations, the ministry should provide transparent timelines, allocate necessary resources, and be held accountable for delivering a world-class national library.
Citizens deserve to see seriousness from their leaders in implementing projects that directly impact education and literacy.
Going forward, the government must show commitment by treating the National Library as a symbol of Nigeria’s knowledge economy, not as an afterthought.
Development Diaries therefore calls on the Federal Ministry of Education and the Budget Office to include clear funding allocations for the library in upcoming budgets, with public reporting on progress.
Nigerians have done their part by contributing to the ‘Oluremi at 65 Education Fund’. It is now time for government institutions to do theirs, fulfilling their duty to the people by completing the National Library without further excuses.
Photo source:The Guardian
