DANIEL Bwala, the Special Adviser on Policy Communication to the Nigerian president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has claimed that Senator Ali Ndume has not had any executed projects throughout his 22-year stay in the National Assembly.
He made the claim (15:39 – 17:01) during an interview on Channels TV’s programme, Sunday Politics on April 13, 2025 in response to earlier criticisms of the presidential media team by Ndume on the same programme on April 11, 2025.
Bwala also stated that despite spending 22 years in the Nigerian National Assembly as a lawmaker, Ndume has not completed a single project in Southern Borno, his constituency. He also accused the senator of neglecting over 120,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) from his constituency who are still refugees in Cameroon.
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Bwala went on to criticize Ndume’s legislative performance, claiming that 90 percent of his bills don’t make it past the second reading.
Part of the audio is transcribed below thus:
…120,000 of his people are in Cameroon as IDPs, during this period Ali Ndume has served as a minority a majority leader and also Senate chair committee on defense and army he has never done anything to bring his people back from Cameroon. The monies that have come to southern Borno in form of a project, there is no single project in the southern Borno. This is a senator who knows his primary assignment is lawmaking and oversight he has never had a bill passed, 90% of his bill they don’t even get to reach second reading they’ll be dismissed not to talk of bringing it for debate he goes about parading and saying that the bill that brought about the Northeast Development Commission he was one that sponsored and it’s a lie it is Senator Nyako…
The FactCheckHub decided to verify the accuracy of these claims as it had gained significant traction in the media space.
CLAIM 1
Ali Ndume has not executed any constituency project throughout his 22 years as a lawmaker.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE!
In 2024, Leadership newspaper reported that Ndume initiated an educational support project designed to benefit students within his constituency. The initiative was aimed at providing assistance to a total of 1,100 students drawn from the nine local government areas that make up Borno South.
According to the report, the project was part of Ndume’s efforts to invest in human capital development and improve access to education for young people in the region, many of whom have been affected by years of conflict and displacement. The educational support was intended to ease the financial burden on families and encourage school enrollment and retention among students.
In a separate report by Blueprint in 2017, Ndume facilitated the drilling of two boreholes and donated two tractors to each of the nine local government areas within the Borno South Senatorial District. The initiative was part of his development efforts aimed at improving access to clean water and boosting agricultural productivity across his constituency.
In 2020, Ndume faced criticism from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) during its investigation into the implementation of constituency projects. The ICPC revealed that the North-East region was the most affected by non-execution of these projects, largely due to the Boko Haram insurgency, which hindered contractors from being mobilized to project sites.
In response, Ndume, speaking on behalf of his fellow lawmakers from the region, told ThisDay newspaper that the blame should lie with the ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) responsible for implementing the projects. He explained that while lawmakers only recommend the projects, it is the MDAs that handle the selection and supervision of contractors.
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Ndume dismissed allegations that lawmakers from the region misappropriated project funds, insisting that it is the MDAs and contractors who should be held accountable for any shortcomings in execution.
Another report by Mawa Foundation noted that Ndume was reported to have failed to account for the N22 million constituency project funds for his senatorial district in 2017.
According to the report, the senator had proposed to supply empowerment equipment to residents of his senatorial district as part of the initiative. However, findings by Tracka indicated that 70% of the funds allocated for the project had been released, but there was no clear explanation from the senator on how the money was utilized.
It was also reported that the project was intended to be implemented in several local government areas, some of which were inaccessible at the time due to insurgent occupation.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Ali Ndume has not executed any constituency project throughout his years as a lawmaker is FALSE; while the senator had come under scrutiny a number of times, reports show that he has executed some projects in his senatorial district.
CLAIM 2
Ali Ndume has never had any bill passed at the Senate.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE!
Checks revealed a number of bills that have been sponsored by Ndume include the Peace Corps Establishment Bill, which has passed the second reading at the Nigerian Senate.
He also initiated the Electoral Act Amendment Bill that allowed internally displaced persons (IDPs) to vote in the 2015 general elections.
Similarly, the bill that established the North East Development Commission which Bwala claimed was sponsored by Senator Nyako was actually sponsored by Sen. Ndume at the Senate level and Yakubu Dogara at the House of Representatives level. It was passed into law and currently an Act.
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A further look at the bill progression chart of the 9th Senate uploaded by the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC) shows that of all the ten bills Ndume proposed, the Nigerian Peace Corps bill and the bill to establish a Federal College of Education (FCE) in Marama, Borno state passed its second reading, while the bill seeking to establish the Nigeria Army University, Biu passed its third reading at the Senate.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Ali Ndume has never had any bill passed in the Senate is FALSE; the lawmaker has bills that have passed second reading to his credit at the Senate and bills that have become Acts (law) such as the North East Development Commission Act, among others.
Seasoned fact-checker and researcher Fatimah Quadri has written numerous fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy pieces for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org.
