Fact Check: Verifying Claims Made at Lagos Governorship Election Debate

On Sunday, the Nigeria Debate Consortium (NDC), comprising Channels Television, TVC News, Punch Newspaper, TheCable and Vanguard Newspaper, hosted a live debate for four governorship candidates in Lagos state.

The event was held at The Hub by IALA, House of His Glory, in Lekki, Lagos.

The gubernatorial candidates were Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour of the African Democratic Congress (ADC); Obafemi Hamzat of the All Progressives Congress (APC); Funso Doherty of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC); and Deji Doherty, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Below are some of the claims.

DEJI: Lagos debt burden is about 19 to 20 million

VERIFICATION: According to data from the Debt Management Office (DMO), Lagos domestic debt as of June 2026 stood at N1,195,291,051,436.78, while the external debt stood at $1,267,780,990.92.

VERDICT: False.

DEJI: Lagos minimum wage is N120,000.

VERIFICATION: CableCheck found that in October 2024, the Lagos government announced N85,000 as the minimum wage for civil servants in the state.

VERDICT: Incorrect

FUNSO: Lagos generates more internally generated revenue (IGR) than 31 other Nigerian states combined.

VERIFICATION: According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Lagos generated N1,769,194,412,060.40 (N1.77 trillion) in internally generated revenue in 2025, while 31 states combined generated N1.733,475,700,917.30 (N1.733 trillion).

The 31 states are Edo, Oyo, Kano, Akwa Ibom, Kwara, Kaduna, Abia, Jigawa, Niger, Katsina, Ondo, Cross River, Ekiti, Anambra, Osun, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Plateau, Gombe, Kogi, Imo, Borno, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Kebbi, Zamfara, Benue, Taraba, Sokoto, Ebonyi and Yobe.

VERDICT: Correct

HAMZAT: Lagos is 2 metres below sea level

VERIFICATION: Sources, including WorldAtlas and Geology.com, a geoscience news and information site, show that Lagos is not on the list of places below sea level.

VERDICT: Incorrect.

HAMZAT: There is nowhere in Africa that the private sector has funded a rail system.

VERIFICATION: Findings by CableCheck showed that contrary to the claim, private companies have funded railways in African countries such as Angola and South Africa.

In 2022, the Angolan ministry of transport awarded a 30-year concession to the Lobito Atlantic Railway to operate the 1,300km Lobito railway, which runs across Angola to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, and a minerals terminal.

The Lobito Atlantic Railway is a consortium of three investors (Trafigura Group, Belgian rail operator Vecturis, and Mota-Engil Engenharia e Construção África).

Through a private-public partnership (PPP), the Bombela Concession Company co-financed, built, and operates the Gautrain rapid rail system in South Africa.

VERDICT: Incorrect.

HAMZAT: Lagos State Real Estate Regulation law was passed last year (2025).

VERIFICATION: No such law was passed in 2024. However, the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority, also known as LASRERA, was signed into law in 2022 by Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor.

VERDICT: Incorrect.

DEJI DOHERTY: Lagos has a population of over 25 million

VERIFICATION: There is no standard estimate of Lagos’ population as the national census was last held in 2006.

However, according to World Population Review, Lagos’ 2026 population is estimated at 14,881,845. On the other hand, the Lagos State Bureau of Statistics, cited in the state medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF), estimates the state population at 31.91 million for 2025.

VERDICT: Inconclusive