Post by Abiodun Aruleba (@abiodun_aruleba)

I went out to the community gym today here in the UK. On my way there, I missed my route and accidentally walked into a junior school compound. I looked around for someone who could direct me to the right place, but the school was on holiday and the area was empty. After about five or six minutes, a security officer approached me. He told me he had seen me on the CCTV and figured I must have lost my way. I explained where I was heading, and he directed me to the gym, which was just behind the school.

That moment made me think. If a community school here can have such effective CCTV monitoring, imagine what Nigeria could achieve if constituency funds were genuinely used for community development. With proper investment, our schools could have modern security systems to protect children, and millions of young people could gain employment through installation, maintenance, and monitoring of these systems.

Unfortunately, in many cases, constituency money meant for development is diverted into private pockets. Instead of improving communities, some politicians use these funds to buy luxury cars and houses while ordinary people continue to suffer from insecurity and lack of infrastructure.
Nigeria needs a serious turnaround from this selfish behaviour. Constituency funds should be paid directly to community councils or transparent local development boards, not routed through individuals who misuse them.
Other ways to ensure the money reaches the right place include: Community Development Trusts: Independent bodies made up of community leaders, civil society groups, and professionals who manage funds with strict auditing.

Public Budget Tracking Platforms: Digital dashboards where citizens can see how every naira is allocated and spent.

Mandatory Third‑Party Audits: Annual audits by reputable firms, with reports published publicly.

Direct Community Voting: Allow communities to vote on which projects should be funded each year.

Performance‑Based Funding: Politicians only receive funds after showing evidence of completed projects.

Partnerships with NGOs and private sector: Funds can be co‑managed with organisations that already have strong accountability systems.

Nigeria has the resources. What we need is a system that ensures the money actually serves the people.

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