Economic Terrorism in Broad Daylight: Tinubu and APC’s 600 Billion Naira Scam for 30km of Asphalt
By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Sahara Weekly Nigeria
When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) came into power, many Nigerians (desperate for hope after the Buhari-era misrule) believed change might finally come. Instead, what Nigerians got was more than just failure; what they got was economic terrorism a state-sanctioned, elite-protected and blood-sucking governance that is literally killing Nigerians and entrenching poverty. If there’s any political ideology guiding APC today, it is how to loot faster, lie harder and leave nothing behind.
Let us put it plainly: supporters and defenders of Tinubu and APC are no different from political and economic terrorists. They are not just complicit in systemic corruption; they are active collaborators in a war against the Nigerian people. And the latest episode? ₦600 billion for 30 kilometers of road on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. Chai! What else do you call this if not a heist dressed in agbada?
₦600 Billion for 30km: A National Robbery in Progress
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was sold to Nigerians as a 700km landmark infrastructure project that would boost trade, improve connectivity and stimulate economic growth. Yet, what we have now is a disastrous joke: 30 kilometers completed (barely), at the cost of ₦600 billion. That is ₦20 billion per kilometer. In comparison, China builds high-speed rail at $17 million per km. Nigeria is paying almost $30 million per km for a basic coastal road. Who’s fooling who?
Former Senator Shehu Sani didn’t mince words:
“₦600 billion for 30km of road is an insult to common sense. This is not development. This is daylight robbery.”
Even those who supported Tinubu in 2023 have grown quiet, unable to defend this barefaced fraud. When a government spends ₦600 billion on a mere stretch of road and calls it “progress”, then we know we are in a state of intellectual and financial emergency.
Poverty as Policy: Nigeria’s Economic Collapse Under Tinubu
Let’s talk numbers. Since Tinubu’s inauguration in May 2023, Nigeria’s inflation rate has climbed to an unbearable 34.8%, with food inflation crossing 40%. A bag of rice now costs ₦90,000, up from ₦35,000 two years ago. Bread is a luxury, fuel is unaffordable and electricity is nearly non-existent. Yet, this government finds ₦600 billion for 30km of road and another ₦10 billion to install solar panels in Aso Rock; yes, the same Aso Rock that claimed the national grid had been fixed!
“You cannot build roads in the dark while industries shut down due to lack of power,” says Professor Pat Utomi.
“It’s like building a hospital with no doctors or medicine. This is madness dressed as leadership.”
Tinubu’s so-called economic reforms are nothing but IMF-scripted austerity. Fuel subsidy was removed overnight with no safety nets. The naira was floated, crashing from ₦460/$ to over ₦1,500/$. Instead of managing the chaos, the government responded by borrowing $2.25 billion from the World Bank. All we got in return was more hunger and “cash transfers” of ₦25,000 for three months. This is not leadership, it is economic banditry.
Electricity? Still a Dream
More than 100 million Nigerians live without access to reliable electricity. The grid collapses every other month. Businesses spend 40 to 60% of their capital on diesel and petrol. And what is Tinubu’s solution? Spend ₦10 billion on solar panels for the Presidential Villa so the ruling class can shine in light while the rest of the country gropes in darkness.
The Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) recently issued a damning report:
“No industrial growth or digital economy is possible without stable electricity. Prioritizing road projects over national grid reforms is a tragic misplacement of priorities.”
And yet, this regime keeps boasting about road infrastructure as if the people can eat tar or power their shops with gravel. You cannot build your way into prosperity if what you’re building is a shrine to corruption.
Worse Than Military Rule: APC’s Authoritarian Pretence
Let’s not forget the silencing of dissent. Activists, journalists and even clergymen have been harassed, arrested and threatened for criticizing the regime. The DSS operates like a state police for the cabal. Media houses are gagged. Opposition leaders are either bought over or intimidated into submission. This is not democracy. This is civilian dictatorship.
“APC is a criminal cartel masquerading as a political party,” said Aisha Yesufu.
“What they’re doing is not governance. It is organized oppression.”
Nigerians Are Dying Literally
A United Nations report in May 2025 revealed that over 75 million Nigerians are facing acute food insecurity. Hospitals are overcrowded, schools are underfunded and youth unemployment is over 53%. Suicide rates have doubled. People are dying not just because of insecurity, but because of economic starvation.
How can anyone with a conscience defend this regime? How can any sane mind celebrate ₦600 billion for 30km when over 90% of local government roads across the country remain impassable? If this is not terrorism, what is?
From Hope to Horror: APC’s Legacy of Lies
The APC has now perfected the art of deception. Every speech from Tinubu’s team is an insult to intelligence. They speak of digital economy when there’s no light, agriculture revival when fertilizer costs more than a worker’s salary and “renewed hope” when all we see is renewed hunger.
“What Nigerians expected was reform. What they got is refined suffering,” said Dr. Doyin Okupe.
“This administration is simply a continuation of the Buhari failure, but worse.”
The Bitter Truth: Nigerians Must Wake Up
The real terrorists in Nigeria are not just Boko Haram or bandits in the bushes. They wear suits, speak grammar on TV and smile while siphoning trillions. Their weapon is policy. Their bullets are inflation, fuel prices, power outages, hunger and despair. They don’t kidnap your body, they abduct your future.
₦600 billion for a haphazard 30km road is not just theft. It is treason. It is moral, financial and national betrayal. Tinubu and APC have become the greatest obstacles to Nigeria’s progress. Their politics is built on deceit, their economics on fraud and their governance on the back of the hungry.
As the 2027 elections draw near, Nigerians must never forget. We must organize, mobilize and uproot this cartel masquerading as government. Otherwise, the road they’re building (at ₦20 billion per kilometer) will only lead us deeper into darkness.
Power to the People. Not the Looters.
