Tinubu not planning to make Lagos federal capital, says presidency

Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to President Bola Tinubu, says his principal has no plans to change the country’s capital from Abuja to Lagos.

Onanuga said those peddling the rumour that Tinubu is planning to move the country’s capital to Lagos are “dishonest and ethnic champions”.

The presidential aide said the recent Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) announcements on relocation should not trigger unnecessary confusion.

Recently, CBN announced the relocation of some of its departments from Abuja to Lagos.

Similarly, FAAN announced the relocation of its headquarters from Abuja to Lagos.

The development elicited varied reactions, with northern stakeholders like Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), rejecting the decision.

On Tuesday, Ali Ndume, chief whip of the senate, warned Tinubu that the decision will have political consequences.

In a statement on Wednesday, Onanuga backed the decision, saying a regulator ought to be close to the businesses it regulates.

The presidential aide said administrative decisions should not be politicised, adding that those pushing the rumour want to pit the north against the south.

“President Tinubu has no plan whatsoever to move the Federal Capital to Lagos,” he said.

“The movement of FAAN, a department of aviation ministry to Lagos, where it was based before former minister Hadi Sirika moved it to Abuja during the last administration, does not amount to moving the FCT to Lagos.

“The administrative move should have attracted scant attention, as Lagos is the commercial capital and the hub of aviation business in Nigeria.

“FAAN should be nowhere else but near the industry it regulates. FAAN will still maintain some presence in Abuja, as it is not a wholesale movement.

“Similarly, the movement of some departments of the CBN to Lagos should not trigger any hoopla.

“The departments concerned, including the bank supervision department, are those dealing with commercial banks, all with headquarters in Lagos. A regulator ought to be close to the businesses it regulates.

“All those pushing this campaign of falsehood and misinformation know they are merely playing politics, albeit a dangerous politics, to pit the North against the South.

There are many parastatals that are not based in Abuja depending on their mandate. The headquarters of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), for example, are in Lagos. In the same vein, the headquarters of National Inland Waterways Authority( NIWA) is in Lokoja, while that of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), was commissioned by former President Muhammadu Buhari is in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

“Administrative decisions should not be politicized. Let it not look like whenever we are temporarily not at the helm of affairs, we create all manners of dangerous rumours to distract from the bigger picture and emasculate an administration led by a southerner.”