The Presidential Campaign Organisation of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has challenged President Bola Tinubu to personally face Nigerians, account for his administration’s record and defend his policies before seeking a second term in the 2027 presidential election.
The campaign organisation said there should be “no second term without accountability,” accusing Tinubu of attempting to avoid direct engagement with voters after allegedly failing to fulfil key promises made during the 2023 presidential campaign.
The challenge followed Tinubu’s indication that he might not accompany the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign team on its nationwide tour of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, saying he would remain focused on governance.
The President inaugurated the APC Presidential Campaign Council on Wednesday and said the party was prepared to seek a fresh mandate. The Presidency has maintained that governance should not be allowed to grind to a halt because of electioneering.
But Makinde’s campaign organisation, in a statement issued on Thursday by its Director of Strategic Communications, Richard Ihediwa, said the President’s reported decision to limit his participation in the campaign raised fundamental questions about accountability to the electorate.
The organisation argued that a President asking Nigerians to renew his mandate should be prepared to stand before them and explain what his administration has achieved during its first term.
“A President who believes he has performed well should be confident to defend his record before the people,” the campaign said.
It accused Tinubu of using governance as an excuse to avoid facing Nigerians over the consequences of his administration’s policies.
The Makinde campaign escalated its attack by saying Tinubu should reconsider his candidacy if he lacked the stamina to campaign across the country.
“If President Tinubu is so fatigued that he cannot go round the country to canvass for votes, then he should withdraw from the race,” the organisation said.
It argued that Nigerians were not prepared to continue with what it described as an “absentee and lethargic” presidency, insisting that the country required an energetic leader capable of engaging citizens directly.
The campaign also alleged that Tinubu’s decision not to campaign extensively could reinforce concerns that the APC was unwilling to subject its record to direct public scrutiny.
“The decision not only constitutes a serious affront to the Nigerian electorate, but also makes a caricature of democratic ethos,” it said.
The organisation further alleged that the President was reluctant to face voters because of growing resentment over economic hardship, insecurity and other challenges confronting the country.
It said the President should use the campaign period to take responsibility for his administration’s decisions and explain them directly to Nigerians rather than leave the task to political allies and campaign surrogates.
The Makinde campaign’s criticism centred heavily on the administration’s economic reforms, particularly the removal of petrol subsidy and the floating of the naira.
It accused the Federal Government of implementing the policies without adequate protection for vulnerable Nigerians, resulting in higher living costs and declining purchasing power.
“The reckless removal of petrol subsidy, poorly executed floatation of the Naira and other policies without adequate protection for vulnerable citizens have plunged millions of households into punishing hardship.
“Hunger has intensified, purchasing power has eroded, and poverty has become an unbearable reality for countless Nigerians,” it said.
The campaign also criticised the administration over electricity supply and tariffs, alleging that Nigerians had experienced worsening power supply while paying higher electricity charges.
It argued that the sacrifices imposed on citizens by the reforms had not been matched by sufficient improvements in their living conditions.
The campaign organisation also accused the Tinubu administration of failing to fulfil its promise to improve national security.
It alleged that terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, armed robbers and other criminal groups continued to attack communities, kill Nigerians and hold citizens hostage.
“The monumental failures in security, economic management and governance explain why President Tinubu is reluctant to take his re-election campaign directly to Nigerians,” it said.
The organisation maintained that the President should personally answer questions from citizens about security, economic hardship, employment and the general state of the country before asking them for another mandate.
In a separate newsletter issued on Thursday, Makinde himself expanded the criticism, arguing that the success of economic reform should ultimately be measured by its effect on ordinary Nigerians.
He acknowledged that the removal of petrol subsidy and the adoption of a more flexible foreign exchange regime were based on economic arguments, but said the sequencing and human consequences of such policies were equally important.
“Policies tell you what a government wants to change. The order in which it chooses to make those changes tells you how that government thinks.
“There are never enough resources for government to meet every need at once. So, leadership is about what you choose to do first, what you are prepared to postpone, and who bears the cost of those choices,” he said.
The Oyo governor said his administration, which began in 2019, prioritised workers’ salaries, pensions and inherited gratuity obligations while simultaneously pursuing infrastructure development.
“We could have said government needed the money for infrastructure and asked workers and pensioners to wait. Instead of choosing between paying people and building infrastructure, we chose to do both.
“We paid salaries consistently. We regularised pension payments. We began clearing inherited gratuity arrears,” he said.
Makinde said personnel costs accounted for about 70 per cent of Oyo State’s federal receipts during the four years, adding that his administration consequently adopted alternative financing arrangements to execute infrastructure projects.
He cited the Alternative Project Funding Approach, under which contractors financed selected projects upfront and were repaid by the state over an agreed period.
“Going back to our test of leadership, you can see clearly what we chose to do first — meet our obligations. And we accepted the fiscal cost of that choice,” he said.
Makinde argued that macroeconomic improvements alone could not constitute proof that economic reforms were succeeding.
“Reform is not only about fixing the numbers. It is also about how people survive the transition,” he said.
He claimed that poverty had risen from about 56 per cent in 2023 to around 62 per cent in 2026, which he said translated to approximately 23 million additional Nigerians living in poverty.
Makinde acknowledged that the Federal Government had pointed to assessments by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund showing improvements in macroeconomic stability, but argued that those gains had not translated quickly enough into jobs, lower poverty and improved living standards.
“These 23 million are not just numbers. They are our parents, neighbours, friends and children. Macroeconomic stability has not translated at the same pace into jobs, lower poverty and improved living standards for the majority of Nigerians,” he said.
He argued that one presidential term was sufficient for Nigerians to assess a leader’s priorities and determine whether the administration deserved another mandate.
“And if, after four years, a leader has not been able to make those choices work for the people, Nigerians have every right to say: let us try someone else,” he said.
