Commentary questions public campaign for Tinubu’s continued leadership

Zainab Suleiman Okino’s commentary describes what she sees as an unusual change in Nigeria’s political landscape: voters, rather than political leaders, are portrayed as driving efforts to secure the continued leadership of President Bola Tinubu. According to Okino, the political class is not primarily seeking votes through clear arguments, evidence of performance or demonstrated capacity. Instead, she presents ordinary Nigerians as “fighting and scrambling” to install leaders who want to govern them.

The commentary does not describe this public activity as entirely voluntary. Okino says it is accompanied by forms of coercion, cajoling and inducement, suggesting that the support being mobilised is shaped by pressure as well as political preference. The supplied excerpt does not provide details of specific groups, events or policies connected to the campaign for Tinubu’s survival.

It also does not set out a response from the president, his allies or other political actors. Okino’s central argument is therefore about the character of political competition: she contrasts an expected contest in which politicians persuade citizens with a situation in which citizens are depicted as helping to crown those seeking power. The commentary, published by Premium Times, offers no further factual detail in the available material.