Residents of Bani in Kwara State have been affected by illegal lithium mining, which has destroyed farmlands and heightened insecurity. They claim to have tried contacting their representative, Ahmed Saidu Baba, but were unable to reach him through the official email address provided on the Kwara State House of Assembly's portal. The email address, [email protected], was found to be non-functional. This has hindered their ability to seek government intervention and address the crisis.
A similar situation was reported in Gidan Yaro, a community in Sokoto State, where residents are struggling with poor school facilities. The community's only primary school has just one block of two classrooms with no desks or chairs for pupils. Despite repeated appeals for government intervention, residents claim they have been unable to reach their elected representative, Lamido Abubakar, due to a lack of accessible contact information. This has resulted in the community missing out on a state government N8.3 billion intervention announced in August 2025.
A nationwide investigation by DUBAWA between May and September 2026 found widespread failures in digital accessibility and public responsiveness across Nigeria's 36 State Houses of Assembly. The investigation involved emailing every state assembly requesting official contact channels and guidelines for constituent reporting. Physical Freedom of Information (FOI) petitions were also submitted to seven state legislatures to benchmark offline responsiveness and adherence to legal disclosure mandates.
The investigation revealed that 17 out of 36 State Houses of Assembly (47.2%) had no publicly identifiable official email address through which citizens could directly contact the institution. The affected states include Adamawa, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Enugu, Gombe, Kaduna, Kebbi, Kogi, Niger, Ondo, Plateau, Taraba, and Zamfara. This lack of accessible digital channels has hindered citizens' ability to reach their lawmakers and seek government intervention.
Furthermore, nine State Assemblies have publicly listed email addresses that are non-functional. DUBAWA's experience attempting to contact lawmakers corroborated constituents' claims that listed email addresses were not functional. The only contact information provided on the State House of Assembly's website was an email address that returned an error saying it could not be found or could not receive messages.
The investigation also examined the state legislatures' official websites and social media presence, particularly on Facebook, to assess how institutions use digital channels to communicate with citizens and provide avenues for public engagement. The findings show a significant gap in digital accessibility, making it difficult for citizens to access lawmakers and seek government intervention.
The lack of accessible digital channels has significant implications for citizens' ability to participate in governance and seek help from their elected representatives. Residents and community leaders have expressed frustration and disappointment with the lack of responsiveness from lawmakers and the government. They emphasize the need for lawmakers to provide accessible contact information and engage with their constituents effectively.
Key points
- Many Nigerian communities face challenges in reaching their elected representatives due to inactive or non-existent digital contact channels.
- 17 out of 36 State Houses of Assembly have no publicly identifiable official email address.
- The lack of accessible digital channels hinders citizens' ability to participate in governance and seek help from their elected representatives.
