What a shame on Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State! To travel all the way to China to inspect the construction of a surveillance aircraft is the height of misplaced priority and executive joblessness. What business does a state governor have in an aircraft assembly line thousands of miles away? Is he an aeronautical engineer, an aircraft manufacturer, or the project’s technical evaluator?
Governance is not tourism, and leadership is not measured by the number of photo-ops taken abroad. When a governor leaves behind a state still grappling with poverty, insecurity, bad roads, and unpaid workers just to pose for cameras in a foreign hangar, it speaks volumes about a government losing its sense of purpose.
If the intent was to demonstrate seriousness about security, then the real work should be happening in Oyo State — strengthening local intelligence, equipping the Amotekun corps, investing in technology, and addressing the social roots of crime. You don’t need a flight to China for that; you need vision, focus, and discipline.
This journey is not only a sheer waste of public funds, it reveals the deeper malaise of Nigeria’s political class — the obsession with style over substance, travel over transformation, and spectacle over service.
Nigeria is doomed when those elected to solve real problems are more interested in acting out international charades.
Adefemiwa is a global public communicator, and advocate for good governance. He is the author of Remote Working from Africa: A Practical Guide, and writes from New York, United States. He can be reached via jerome.adefemiwa@gmail.com
