My Observatory:What Are You Governor For? Beyond The Cult Of “Mr. Project”
By Sola Fanawopo
“No governor has yet celebrated increased GDP, an improved growth rate, reduced poverty levels, or a better quality of life. What are you governor for? Mr. Project.”When my friend of over two decades, James Agada, posted this on X, it struck a chord. In two sentences, he captured the fundamental tragedy of Nigerian governance. It forces a simple but uncomfortable question: What is the real purpose of a state governor in Nigeria?
My friend was reacting to possible increase in revenue accrues to the state governments as President Bola Tinubu signed an executive order for the direct remittances of the oil and gas revenue to the federated wallets.
In theory, the office of the governor is a powerhouse of democratic potential. A governor controls vast public resources, dictates policy for millions, and serves as the chief economic architect of a subnational state. In practice, however, the office is becoming one of the most intellectually underwhelming positions in our political journey
The Concrete Trap: Infrastructure as an End, Not a Means
For too many, governance has been reduced to “brick-and-mortar” politics. The formula is wearyingly predictable: build a few roads, construct a bridge, commission a flyover, and rehabilitate a government building. From this, a convenient narrative is spun: “I am an Infrastructure Governor.”And that is where the ambition ends.
Infrastructure matters. Roads and bridges are the literal arteries of any economy. But infrastructure is a means, not an end. Its true value lies in how it stimulates production, lowers the cost of doing business, creates jobs, and improves the human condition.
Unfortunately, most governors stop at the construction phase. They show a startling lack of interest in building sustainable economic systems. We see highways but no industries; flyovers but no factories; stadiums but no sports economy. The result? Citizens commute on world-class asphalt toward unemployment and cross smooth bridges into deeper poverty.
The Poverty of Planning
Governance in many states is currently driven by intuition rather than data; by improvisation rather than strategy. Everything is ad hoc. Each new administration abandons the existing plans of its predecessor, wasting time, resources, and institutional memory.
A truly successful governor should be able to state, with the backing of verifiable data:
“Our state’s GDP has grown by X%.
“Unemployment has declined by Y%.
“Small business registration is at an all-time high.
“The poverty index is trending downward.”How many of our current 36 governors can honestly make these claims?
Governing for Headlines, Not History
Part of the problem is our political culture. We reward appearances over outcomes. A bridge photographs better than a functional education system. A flyover trends on social media better than a teacher-training program. A commissioned project is easier to market to a hungry electorate than a reformed, transparent civil service.Consequently, governors pursue visibility instead of viability. They compete on kilometers of asphalt and the number of contracts awarded, while serious conversations about export capacity, human capital, and innovation are sidelined. The government has become a survival project, a cycle of contract awards and political patronage, rather than a development project.
The Governor as Chief Strategist
To govern is more than to build; it is to think, to prioritize, and to transform. A governor should be the Chief Economic Strategist of the state, not its Chief Contractor.He should be obsessed with the mechanics of prosperity: How do we turn this state into a production hub? How do we make our youth employable in a global digital economy? How do we make state policy predictable enough to attract long-term, private-sector investment? Without answers to these questions, governance is merely an empty performance.
A Call for New Metrics
We, the citizens, must stop applauding mediocrity. We must stop celebrating the fulfillment of basic duties as if they were miracles. A governor is not elected to pour asphalt; he is elected to improve lives.If, after four or eight years, the poverty rate remains static and opportunity remains scarce, no number of bridges can compensate for that failure. Until we judge our leaders by economic outcomes rather than physical structures, our states will remain underdeveloped monuments to wasted potential.The question remains for those in the State House: What are you governor for? To cut ribbons and pose for cameras, or to build the dignity and prosperity of your people?
History is watching the metrics, not the ceremonies.
Sola Fanawopo writes from Ìgbájo*
