Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has called on his fellow state chief executives to take full responsibility for the security of their domains, insisting that the unprecedented financial resources now available to states leave no room for excuses.
Speaking on Monday at the Northern Nigeria Investment and Industrialization Summit in Abuja, Sule warned that the era of shifting blame to the Federal Government for worsening insecurity must end. He stressed that governors have the capacity, resources, and mandate to protect lives and property.
“For the first time in our history, all tiers of government are sharing more revenue than they ever imagined. In fact, just this month, more than ₦2.2 trillion was distributed to the federal, state, and local governments. When I became governor in 2019, the figure was barely ₦600 billion,” Sule said.
The governor challenged his counterparts, especially those in the North, to channel these resources into building stronger security structures and economic opportunities for their people, adding that failure to act would amount to dereliction of duty.
He cited developments in Nasarawa as proof of what is possible when resources are properly harnessed. According to him, investors in the solid minerals sector have been compelled to build processing plants within the state, with a 3,000-metric-tonne plant already operational and another 6,000-tonne facility set for commissioning.
Sule also revealed that the state has confirmed oil reserves of between 5 and 7 million barrels, and is aggressively expanding its agricultural base. “We are increasing our rice cultivation from 3,300 hectares to 8,000 hectares before the end of my tenure,” he stated.
He urged his colleagues to stop passing blame, take charge of their security architecture, and use the current financial inflows to transform their states.
Meanwhile, figures from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) show that a gross of ₦3.63 trillion was shared in the latest disbursement, with ₦2.22 trillion allocated among the three tiers of government.
Governor Sule’s call is expected to ignite further debate on the role of governors in tackling Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, particularly in the North where banditry, insurgency, and communal clashes continue to threaten lives and livelihoods.