New construction is springing up across cities like the commercial capital, Lagos, which, among other projects, is the site of Eko Atlantic, a massive planned neighborhood built on a spit of landfill extending into the Atlantic Ocean.
But opulent projects like Eko Atlantic offer little for Nigeria’s legions of poor people.
Forty-six percent of Nigerians live below the national poverty line, according to the World Bank. Public utilities like electricity barely work. Those who can afford it resort to generators for electricity.
Tijani Shidu, an artist, said his belief in the incompetence of the current government is one reason he plans to vote for Buhari. The road to his hometown in the central state of Kogi is in disrepair, and he rarely has electricity at home. He blames Jonathan for both.
“It’s only now that things went wrong that insecurity became the order of the day,” he said.
Despite all the promises, Ngwodo said people probably won’t see too many changes in their lives right away, regardless of who wins. If anything, Nigeria is in for lean times.