About three in five Nigerians, 55 per cent of the 406 respondents that participated in the a PREMIUM TIMES poll, said the tour, led by the Information Minister, was absolutely unnecessary and a waste of public resources.
Another three in ten respondents, 32 per cent, said the tour was a scam and should be sanctioned, with officials investigated for their roles in it.
However, it was not all negative feedback as about 13 per cent of respondents said the tour was necessary. About half of this figure, seven per cent, said the tour was necessary and Nigeria needs more of such; six per cent agreed that the tour was essential for Nigeria but believed the officials had it rolled out as a decoy to steal public funds; while one percent of the respondents said the tour was good but poorly timed.
The Good Governance Tour team, led by Mr. Maku, had its first spate of controversy when the Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, declined the team’s request to be hosted by the Edo Government. Mr. Oshiomhole said that it was a waste of Edo State funds, adding that his actions (in the state) spoke for him.
“It is not proper to use Edo State tax payers’ money to finance a Federal Government programme,” the governor said. “If they pay me a courtesy visit, I will receive them, but I don’t have a dime to spend on them because I do not need them to come to tell Edo people how I built roads and schools. My achievement speaks for me.”
The Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, took sides with Mr. Oshiomhole saying the tour was unnecessary.
The tour members, however, released a statement accusing Messrs Fashola and Oshiomhole, both members of the opposition Action Congress of Nigeria, of having skeletons to hide from the tour members.
“It is obvious that Governors of a certain partisan persuasion are nervous about the impending tour of their states,” the statement read. “This clearly demonstrates that they have something to hide. If not, why are they afraid of the tour of projects in their states?”
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