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A citizen advocacy group, Legislative Watch, has asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to explain why funds allocated for capital projects across the country have not been disbursed despite the funds being included in successive national budgets.
The group said ongoing delays in funding approved capital projects have hampered budget execution, left contractors unpaid, and raised concerns about the government’s revenue management.
In a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja, Chairman of the group, Alfred Uche, said Nigerians have the right to know how government revenues are being used when capital projects undertaken in the 2024 and 2025 budgets remain largely unfunded.
“The implementation of the 2024 and 2025 budgets has been nothing but a failure. Most of the capital projects included in the 2025 budget have not been funded, while outstanding payments for projects implemented under the 2024 budget have been abandoned,” Uche said.
He urged President Tinubu to provide a public briefing on the status of funds allocated for capital projects, stressing that transparency was necessary to restore public confidence in the budget process.
“Mr President needs to tell Nigerians what is happening and why the capital budget of lawmakers is not being funded even though many contractors have completed projects allocated under the allocation,” he said.
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According to the group, contractors implementing government-approved projects are now burdened with debt after financing the contracts through loans, and many have not received payments months after completion.
Legislative Watch questioned where revenues intended for capital expenditure were channeled and called on the Federal Government to account for undistributed funds.
The group stated that this problem does not only occur with projects related to parliamentarians, they also emphasized that delays in disbursement of funds have affected capital projects in several sectors and undermined the objectives of the annual budget allocation.
In support of those concerns, a federal lawmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly, said uncertainty over funding had made many contractors reluctant to take on projects proposed in the 2026 budget.
“The situation is so critical that contractors are no longer willing to take on capital projects for the 2026 budget because they are not sure when or if they will be paid for,” the lawmaker said.
Legislative Watch also called on the National Assembly to carry out its constitutional oversight responsibilities by requesting a full explanation from the executive regarding the implementation of the capital budget.
The group warned that if lawmakers fail to force the President to reveal why allocated capital project funds have not been disbursed, then they will mobilize citizens for nationwide protests until Nigerians receive clear answers.
“We make a passionate appeal to President Tinubu to ensure that these capital funds, which have been allocated, are paid without further delay. Many of these completed projects were implemented with borrowed funds, yet contractors remain unpaid while some MPs are openly declaring these same projects as achievements that reflect positively on the administration,” Uche said.
The organization insists that the immediate release of remaining capital project funds and greater transparency regarding public revenues will not only ease the difficulties faced by contractors but also restore confidence in the government budget and accelerate infrastructure development across the country.
