Yusuf Ishaku Goje
Zonal Intervention Projects, popularly known as constituency projects, have become the primary yardstick for measuring the performance of legislators in Nigeria.
Most constituents prioritize representation above all else, often downplaying the equally critical roles of law-making and oversight.
This preference is understandable, as representation is largely viewed as a legislator’s ability to facilitate tangible projects or interventions within the annual Federal Government budget, with outcomes the people can directly see, touch, and feel.
In the ongoing debate over legislative performance, particularly in Kaduna, a simple search of the 2025 Federal Government Approved Budget reveals significant efforts by our legislators to lobby for their constituencies.
For instance, tracing constituency projects linked to the Kaduna State Senators, with that of Zone One Senatorial District having an allocation of about N3.42 billion, while Zone Two had N2.6 billion, and Zone Three led with N3.48 billion.
While these figures demonstrate their individual level of capacity to lobby and influence the budget formulation process on behalf of their constiutents, they do not tell the full story.
However, in the arena of electoral contests, what counts is what is actually delivered on the ground, leading many to question their legislators when projects fail to materialize.
To bridge the gap between public expectations and the harsh reality of governance, we must interrogate the underlying facts of budget execution.
In 2025, the Federal Government budget was approximately N54.99 trillion, a figure that included all proposed constituency projects.
However, a common public misconception is that approved budget allocations equate to money on the ground. In reality, a budget is merely an estimate that depends entirely on revenue performance and the shifting priorities of the executive branch, who are in charge of budget implementation, including constituency projects.
Even if a legislator successfully influences the inclusion of projects in the budget, the actual implementation is largely outside of their direct control, especially for those who do not hold principal office positions.
The year 2025 was characterized by remarkably low capital expenditure releases across the board. By late 2025, reports indicated that only 30% of capital expenditure had been released to Ministries, Departments, and Agencies.
This implies that roughly 70% of projects captured in the budget, including the vast majority of constituency projects, were never executed.
A sobering example of this disconnect was seen when the Minister of Health and Social Welfare reportedly disclosed that the Ministry received only N36 million out of an appropriated N218 billion capital budget, representing a dismal 0.01% performance.
The implication of such a fiscal crisis is that nearly all constituency projects within the health sector, and many others, remained unimplemented. Recognizing this systemic challenge, the Federal Government recently announced a roll-over of 70% of 2025 capital projects into the 2026 fiscal year.
This administrative bottleneck is entirely out of the control of incumbent legislators and must be criticized within that specific context.
To conclude, blaming your legislator is acknowledging the failure of the Federal Government, who are in charge of revenue generation, budget releases and implementation.
So, if a legislator remains active in carrying out interventions, attracting projects, and championing bills that directly benefit their constituency despite such poor budget performance, they deserve commendation before criticism.
Evaluating a representative requires us to distinguish between their ability to lobby and the executive’s failure to fund it.
Lets engage, ask the right questions and hold the government accountable.
Goje is an active citizen, member of the civil society and OGP enthusiast
