Nigeria, Feb. 9 -- When he presented his budget proposals for 2024 to Nigeria's National Assembly, the first full year of appropriations under his presidency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu identified as his priorities human asset development, poverty reduction and fighting insecurity. Last week, his official spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, appeared to forget or renounce that policy direction, when he acknowledged that 133 million Nigerians were multi-dimensionally poor but claimed that had nothing to do with the Federal Government. According to Mr. Onanuga, the states and local governments were responsible for that.

On the same day, 450 kilometres away, Vice-President, Kashim Shettima, provided a full rebuttal of Mr. Onanuga's escape into sove...