By Sandra Ugwu 

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on media executives to extend the same level of scrutiny they apply to the Federal Government to state governments and local government councils across the country.

The President made the appeal while hosting members of the Newspapers Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria and the Nigerian Guild of Editors at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. According to him, recent reforms under his administration have strengthened fiscal autonomy for states and local governments, making it important for the media to monitor how those funds are utilized.

Tinubu noted that local governments now receive their allocations directly following the Supreme Court judgment granting local government fiscal autonomy, stressing that accountability at the sub-national level is crucial for the success of Nigeria’s federal system. “We’ve opened up the principle of federalism to the extent that local governments are now getting their money. But how they use it is in your hands, so don’t bombard me alone. Look at the local government too, and equally the sub-national,” he said.

The President also stated that no state in the country is currently borrowing to pay workers’ salaries, attributing the development to reforms by his administration that increased allocations through improved revenue collection and higher crude oil production.

Tinubu thanked media proprietors for their persistent criticism of his government, saying their scrutiny has pushed him to perform better. He revealed that reading newspapers daily has become a personal habit, describing it as an “addiction” that keeps him informed about national issues.

He also noted that the ongoing tensions involving the United States, Israel, and Iran are affecting key sectors of the global economy, with implications for Nigeria.