Afenifere Faults Tinubu’s 3 Years In Office, Warns Against ‘One-Man Rule’

The pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has criticised the three-year administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, describing it as a period marked by economic hardship, insecurity, unemployment and weakening democratic institutions.

In a statement issued on Thursday by its leader, Oladipo Olaitan, and National Publicity Secretary, Justice Faloye, the group expressed concern over what it described as the current direction of Nigeria’s democracy.

The statement, titled: “Tinubu’s 3-Year Report: Summum Malum or Summum Bonum,” accused the administration of worsening insecurity, poverty and an alleged erosion of democratic federalism.

According to Afenifere, Nigerians are increasingly living in fear due to killings, kidnappings and economic hardship across the country.

“The nightmare of ultimate evil has become a reality under APC administration with teachers being beheaded, children being kidnapped and villages ransacked and displaced,” the statement read.

The group cited recent abductions and killings in Kwara and Oyo States as evidence of what it described as government failure to reform the nation’s security architecture, particularly through the establishment of state and community policing.

Afenifere also criticised the administration’s economic policies, arguing that neoliberal reforms had deepened poverty and widened inequality.

It said rising debt, unemployment and cost of living had pushed many Nigerians into severe hardship despite government assurances on reforms.

The organisation further alleged that corruption and the cost of governance had increased, even as citizens were being urged to make sacrifices.

Afenifere also accused the government of undermining democratic institutions through alleged intimidation of opposition parties, labour unions and student groups, warning of a drift toward authoritarian rule.

The group called on the administration to guarantee free and fair elections and allow opposition voices to operate freely ahead of future polls.

“Afenifere hereby implores the Tinubu administration to change its course towards a one-man rule by allowing credible opposition parties and voices to exist, to allow free and fair elections, and to prevent total derailment of our democracy,” the statement added.