For several weeks, the Federal Capital Territory has hosted an extensive programme of project commissioning ceremonies. Roads, bridges and public facilities have been unveiled across Abuja at events attended by senior government officials, traditional rulers, community leaders and other guests. Extensive live broadcasts and sustained media coverage have kept the programme firmly in the public spotlight, making it one of the most visible government activities in recent months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Commissioning completed projects is a legitimate and longstanding function of government. It provides an opportunity to present completed infrastructure to the public, demonstrate progress on development commitments, and account for investments made with public funds. The scale and duration of the current programme also carry financial implications that deserve the same level of public scrutiny as the projects themselves. While the government is right to showcase completed projects, citizens are equally entitled to know what it has cost to organise the ceremonies through which those achievements have been presented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Price of Public Celebration<\/strong> The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has not published the cost of the ongoing commissioning programme, making it impossible to determine the actual amount committed to the exercise. Nevertheless, prevailing commercial rates for services ordinarily required for major events provide a useful basis for estimating the level of expenditure that a programme of this nature could reasonably attract.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dedicated live television coverage of major public events can cost approximately \u20a610 million per hour<\/strong> for each station<\/strong>, depending on production requirements and contractual arrangements. Reports indicate that AIT, Arise News, Channels Television, Galaxy TV, JKD TV, News Central, NTA, Aso TV, TVC, ADBN TV, and possibly other broadcasters have provided extensive live coverage of many of the commissioning ceremonies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Assuming each event was broadcast for approximately three hours, and in some instances four hours, across these networks, the estimated cost of dedicated live broadcasting alone could be about \u20a6300 million for each day\u2019s event<\/strong>. Where such coverage was procured in addition to routine editorial reporting, broadcasting costs over the duration of the commissioning programme could amount to several hundred millions of naira.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Comparable expenditure would also be associated with planning and delivering each ceremony. High-profile master of ceremonies are reported to command fees of up to \u20a610 million<\/strong> for major public engagements, while staging, canopies, seating, lighting, decoration, sound systems, interpreters, and other event production requirements can cost about \u20a650 million<\/strong> per event, depending on its scale and technical complexity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Transportation for government officials, security deployment, protocol arrangements, hospitality, logistics for journalists, and honoraria for guests would add further to the overall cost, particularly where such ceremonies are organised continuously over an extended period. On these assumptions, a conservative estimate places the cost of each day\u2019s commissioning activities at about \u20a6400 million<\/strong>. Applied over a programme that reportedly ran for thirty-one (31) days to mark President Tinubu’s third anniversary in office, the total expenditure on the commissioning events alone could be at least \u20a612,400,000,000 (12.4 billion naira)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What Citizens Have a Right to Know<\/strong> Public accountability is reflected in the quality of infrastructure delivered and in the willingness of the government to account for every expenditure incurred in delivering and presenting those achievements. The cost of the commissioning programme should therefore be disclosed to the same standard of transparency and scrutiny that applies to every other activity financed with public funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) should publish the total expenditure incurred on the commissioning exercise together with the budgetary provisions under which the programme was financed. There is also a legitimate public interest in knowing whether the expenditure was supported by an approved appropriation (budget), whether the requirements of the Public Procurement Act were followed in engaging broadcasters, event managers and other service providers, whether existing framework contracts were utilised or new contracts were awarded, and what considerations informed the number of commissioning ceremonies and the duration of the programme.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Publishing this information would enable citizens, legislators, civil society organisations and the media to assess the programme based on verified facts rather than speculation. It would also demonstrate that every expenditure of public funds, including the cost of presenting completed projects to the public, is subject to the same standards of transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Impact on Public Needs<\/strong> This consideration is particularly significant at a time when many sectors continue to compete for limited budgetary resources. It is further reinforced by recent public allegations concerning the payment of billions of naira to a purported \u201cghost\u201d federal government agency and reports attributed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicating that public spending of approximately \u20a68.8 trillion<\/strong>, equivalent to about 2% of Nigeria’s GDP<\/strong>, was not reflected in recent official budgets<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The principle of opportunity cost is well established in public financial management and requires that expenditure be assessed in terms of the alternatives that must be forgone. Funds committed to an extended programme of commissioning ceremonies are funds that cannot be directed towards other government responsibilities. Even relatively modest savings realised over the course of the programme could have supported the procurement of learning materials for public schools, medical equipment for primary healthcare centres, environmental sanitation initiatives or the maintenance of existing infrastructure, all of which require sustained investment beyond the completion and commissioning of projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whether the commissioning programme represented prudent financial management depends on the availability of information on the total cost of the exercise, the source of funding, the expenditure approvals obtained, and the considerations that informed its scale and duration. Until this information is made public, legislators, oversight institutions, and citizens cannot determine whether the programme represented value for money or whether the resources devoted to it reflected an appropriate balance between celebrating completed projects and addressing other demands on the public purse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Standard Good Governance Demands<\/strong> A commissioning programme extending over several weeks should be accompanied by the same standard of financial transparency expected of the projects it celebrates. This includes the publication of the programme’s total cost, the budgetary provisions under which it was financed, and the procurement processes used to engage service providers. Making this information publicly available would enable legislators, oversight institutions, civil society organisations and citizens to assess whether the expenditure represented a reasonable use of public resources and complied with established standards of public financial management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Good governance requires consistent adherence to the principles of fiscal discipline, transparency, and accountability throughout the entire project cycle, including the activities organised to commission completed projects. Public confidence is strengthened when expenditure associated with those activities is subject to the same level of scrutiny and oversight as the projects themselves. Applying a consistent standard across all stages of public expenditure reinforces sound financial management and demonstrates a commitment to responsible stewardship of public resources.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For several weeks, the Federal Capital Territory has hosted an extensive programme of project commissioning ceremonies. Roads, bridges and public facilities have been unveiled across Abuja at events attended by senior government officials, traditional rulers, community leaders and other guests. Extensive live broadcasts and sustained media coverage have kept the programme firmly in the public […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4196,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[456,11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-july2026","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4192"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4192\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4198,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4192\/revisions\/4198"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placng.org\/Legist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Public discussion of infrastructure projects understandably focuses on their economic and social value because roads, bridges, and other public facilities continue to serve citizens long after they have been commissioned. Far less attention, however, is paid to the expenditure incurred in organising the ceremonies through which those projects are presented to the public, even though the same taxpayers who finance the infrastructure also bear the cost of the events organised to celebrate its completion. Where a commissioning programme extends over several weeks and comprises numerous ceremonies, the cumulative cost of those activities becomes a legitimate question of public finance and fiscal accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The commissioning programme has prompted important questions about the use of public funds. Many observers have asked whether the expenditure was expressly provided for in the relevant appropriation laws and whether an extended programme of commissioning ceremonies falls within the purposes for which those funds were approved. Questions have also been raised about whether the scale and duration of the exercise, taking place in the period leading to the 2027 general elections, create the perception that official government activities are being used in a manner that confers a political advantage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Public expenditure decisions invariably require governments to balance competing priorities, as resources committed to one purpose are no longer available to address other public needs. A project commissioning programme spanning thirty-one (31) days, therefore, invites consideration of whether the objectives of public accountability, visibility, and citizen engagement could have been achieved through a shorter programme or a more measured approach that delivered comparable public value at a lower cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The roads, bridges and public facilities commissioned across Abuja will continue to improve mobility, support economic activity and serve residents long after the ceremonies have ended, making their contribution to the development of the Federal Capital Territory difficult to dispute. The issue raised by the commissioning programme therefore concerns the stewardship of the public resources used to organise an exercise of this scale and whether the expenditure reflects the principles of economy, efficiency and accountability that should guide the management of public funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n