In spite of public outcry over last week’s renaming of the International Conference Centre, Abuja, to Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, President Bola Tinubu yesterday inaugurated a 300-bed specialist hospital at Millennium Square in Kaduna State named Bola Ahmed Tinubu Specialist Hospital, which consists of nine wings: maternal and child health, radiology and imaging, intensive care unit, special care unit and others.

The Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority is also said to have given approval for the establishment of a cancer centre and nuclear facility in the complex. Speaking at the ceremony, Uba Sani, the state governor, requested Tinubu’s intervention in building the cancer centre as “that’s the only thing missing”.

While reiterating his administration’s commitment to job creation, food security, and inclusive development across the federation, Tinubu commended Sani for his developmental projects, impacts on the people and transforming the state after his predecessor, Nasir el-Rufai ended his “toxic” reign.

Tinubu, in his speech at the commissioning, lauded Sani for outperforming his predecessor. “Uba Sani has performed wonders and changed the environment from a previous toxic, uncontrollable environment to a state of life, progress, and development. I say thank you, my comrade,” he said.

“We’ve witnessed progress. You prioritise people. It is only a far-sighted leader who cares about his people can establish this for their healthcare needs. I am very proud of what you are doing,” he added.

President Tinubu was received by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas; Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin; and Emir of Zazzau, Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli.

Other governors who received the president included Hope Uzodimma of Imo State; Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos; Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti; Monday Okpebholo of Edo; Umar Namadi of Jigawa; and AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Kwara State governor.

The projects commissioned by President Tinubu apart from the hospital included: The Institute of Vocational Training and Skills Development in Rigachikun, Soba, and Samarun Kataf, 24km Kafanchan Township Road and Tudun Biri Road, 22km road linking Kauru and Kubau LGAs, Vocational and Skills Training Centre in Tudun Biri, and 100 CNG buses for public transportation.

Former Vice President Namadi Sambo, who initiated the specialist hospital as governor in 2009, described its completion as a dream fulfilled. “Kaduna had fewer than 3,000 hospital beds for over six million people. This hospital fills a critical gap,” he said.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas praised President Tinubu’s administration for restoring federal presence to the state. He listed key projects such as the Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline (now 72% complete), the Ibadan-Kaduna-Kano railway, FMC Kafanchan, and the University of Applied Sciences in Kachia as transformative interventions.

Responding, Governor Sani thanked the President for his consistent support, describing Tinubu as a leader whose vision has reshaped national priorities. “Kaduna is no longer defined by fear. We are defined by infrastructure, education and productivity,” the governor said.

He disclosed that 535 schools earlier shut due to insecurity have reopened, while over 500,000 hectares of farmland previously abandoned are now active. He also revealed that the new CNG buses would be made free for students, civil servants and pensioners for the next six months.

Sani said Kaduna had constructed 79 roads spanning over 780km, built 62 new secondary schools, and renovated more than 1,000 classrooms. He also announced a 50 percent reduction in tuition fees across state-owned tertiary institutions. He urged Northerners to rally behind President Tinubu, noting that “this is the leader who stood by us when we needed it most.”

The President also commissioned the remodelled Panteka Market, now repositioned as Africa’s largest informal skills hub, housing over 38,000 artisans with internationally recognised certifications.

“These are not just projects—they are signals of inclusion and renewed hope,” the Speaker said. The president used the occasion to confer the national honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) on Abubakar Dangiwa Umar, a retired colonel and prominent June 12 advocate. Umar, a former military officer and outspoken critic of successive governments, was described by the president as a “soldier of democracy”.

Tinubu said Umar’s name was inadvertently left out of the list of June 12 honourees announced on Democracy Day. “Let me use this opportunity to correct an omission. Some of those people that I missed out on during the June 12 broadcast at the National Assembly is Colonel Dangiwa,” he said.

“Today, let me correct that by honouring him with national recognition of CFR.”
Umar, who served as military governor of Kaduna and later became a vocal advocate for democratic reforms, was a key figure in the campaign against the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.

His omission from the June 12 honours had sparked criticism from some civil society actors and democracy advocates. Tinubu said the national honour was a recognition of Umar’s courage and steadfastness in the struggle for democracy.

TINUBU’S remarks come months after el-Rufai dumped the All Progressives Congress (APC) to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP). The former Kaduna governor vowed to rally opposition parties to oust Tinubu from office in 2027. The former Kaduna governor fell out with Tinubu after the Senate blocked his ministerial appointment nomination. El-Rufai accused the president of being behind the blocking of his appointment.

Again, el-Rufai has said that it is not possible for President Tinubu to be re-elected in 2027. The SDP chieftain made this known in an interview shared on X, stating that anybody who thinks otherwise does not live in Nigeria.

According to el-Rufai, Nigerians have lost faith in the APC and the president and would have no interest in voting for them in the coming general election.

This is despite assurances from the Tinubu-led administration that Nigerians’ sufferings would soon be over. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, spoke during an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday, providing a summary of what the Tinubu-led government has done thus far to set the economy on the right path.

El-Rufai stated that there is no pathway for the former Lagos State governor. He said that even the weakest opposition would defeat Tinubu because Nigerians are unhappy with APC and the policies of the current administration. “I don’t see a pathway for him,” he said.

El-Rufai maintained that those defecting to the ruling party do not matter, insisting that the real target of SDP and its emerging coalition are the voters. “It is greedy and hungry politicians and those that are looking for money, contract, appointment, office that are defecting,” he added.

“The other class of those defecting are those that know that the EFCC or ICPC can intimidate them because they know what they have done if they have done what is not quite right.

“And this is what I think the SDP and the coalition of political parties or grouping that we are working with is targeting. We believe that the 2027 elections will be between the APC and Nigerians.”