Welcome to Wednesday’s roundup of Nigerian newspaper headlines, accompanied by our advocacy-focused calls on issues that impact citizens.
1. Punch: Governors budget N525 billion for security as killings spread
States across Nigeria allocated a combined N525.23 billion to security votes and related operations between 2023 and 2025, according to an analysis of approved budget documents published on Open States, a BudgIT-backed platform.
Our Take: Nigerians should demand full transparency and public accounting for security votes from state governors, state assemblies, and oversight agencies, including clear breakdowns of how billions are spent and measurable outcomes tied to improved safety. We deserve more than the ritual of ‘security vote approved’ while insecurity thrives, because secrecy is not a security strategy and cash without scrutiny does not stop bullets.
2. The Guardian: 2027: INEC Laments Waning Public Confidence in Elections
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has acknowledged a significant decline in public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process, noting that trust remains fragile despite recent reforms, as it begins early preparations for the 2026 off-cycle elections and the 2027 general election.
Our Take: We should be demanding more than workshop communiqués and hotel PowerPoint presentations. Let us insist that INEC, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Nigeria Police Force, and the electoral offences tribunal (when constituted) ensure transparent vote transmission, timely prosecution of electoral offenders, independent audits of election results, and real accountability for officials who compromise the process. Public trust will not be rebuilt through ‘reaffirmed commitments’ alone, because democracy is not restored by conferences or retirement speeches.
3. Daily Trust: Kano resident: How my wife died after hospital left scissors in her stomach
The Abubakar Imam Urology Centre in Kano has been accused of medical negligence following the death of Aishatu Umar, whose husband, Abubakar Muhammad, alleged she died from complications linked to a surgery carried out at the facility.
Our Take: Nigerians should be demanding more than sympathy press statements and condolence visits after preventable deaths like this; we should be insisting on enforceable patient-rights standards that make proper post-surgical investigations mandatory, routine audits of public hospitals, and real consequences for medical negligence, not the usual ‘take paracetamol and go home’ culture dressed up as care. Let us call for functional complaint and redress systems, transparent hospital records, and independent medical review panels.
