Prince Adewole Adebayo, the presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party, said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration will be judged at the 2027 general election on whether it has eased hardship, insecurity and rising living costs. He said the political mood is already being shaped by Nigerians’ frustration with economic pressure, not by party alliances or influence.
“You cannot defeat President Tinubu by merely rousing anger. You have to raise issues because he is in charge of government today and, on objective analysis, he is not delivering,” Adebayo said. He argued that inflation and higher fuel costs have made daily life harder for ordinary people, saying many workers can no longer meet basic needs even when they earn regular incomes.
Adebayo said the strain is visible in the basics of everyday transport and household spending. “A Nigerian who owns a Toyota Corolla did not bargain for spending N60,000 to fill the tank when his salary is less than N200,000,” he said, adding that poor governance and ineffective policies have left families under severe pressure.
He also faulted the government’s handling of electricity, saying the power sector had shown little improvement despite promises made during the 2023 election campaign. “President Tinubu himself cannot give himself electricity. He has to go off-grid in the State House because the national grid failed him,” Adebayo said, arguing that the president would eventually have to account for the administration’s economic policies, debt profile and governance decisions.
The SDP candidate said anti-graft efforts should remain separate from politics and free of influence from whichever party is in power. “It is not an APC government or SDP government that should take people to jail. Law enforcement investigates, the judiciary adjudicates and sanctions are applied without political coloration,” he said. He warned against what he described as cases in which politicians under investigation seek protection by defecting to the ruling party, saying: “We don’t want a situation where people facing trial are told that if they switch to the ruling party, they can obtain forgiveness or amnesty.”
Adebayo’s criticism lands as opposition figures sharpen their attacks on the Tinubu administration ahead of the next election cycle, with the debate likely to center on whether worsening costs of living, power shortages, insecurity and public frustration outweigh the president’s political reach. For now, his argument is simple: in 2027, performance will count more than power.
