ADC Faults First Lady’s Gesture on National Library Project, Urges Federal Funding
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has faulted First Lady Oluremi Tinubu’s decision to tie her birthday celebration to the revival of the abandoned National Library project in Abuja, describing the asset as a national monument that should not be reduced to an act of charity.
The party, while acknowledging her gesture, urged the Federal Government to take immediate responsibility for completing and maintaining the project, which it described as the custodian of Nigeria’s collective memory and intellectual heritage. It insisted that such a landmark must be prioritised through transparent and sustainable national funding rather than goodwill donations.
Established by an Act of Parliament in 1964, the National Library has been under construction for years, with successive administrations unable to complete the project.
ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the First Lady’s interest should instead be used to influence presidential and budgetary attention towards the project’s completion. He stressed that national monuments must not be trivialised or treated as personal initiatives.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has commended Mrs Tinubu for asking well-wishers to channel birthday gifts into donations for the library project. A statement signed by the ministry’s Director of Press and Public Relations, Folasade Boriowo, described the gesture as an act of generosity that reflects her commitment to education and the transformative power of knowledge.
The ministry noted that reviving the National Library Fund remains a central pillar in the Federal Government’s plan to reposition Nigeria from a resource-based to a knowledge-based economy.
