22/08/2026
You Can't Be Supporting Tinubu and Lecturing Us on Corruption
By Mohammed Bello Doka
August 19,2026.
How can a man who spends his days in American courtrooms fighting to keep his past shrouded in darkness turn around and lecture Nigerians on the virtues of transparency and accountability? How can those who surround him—men with their own sordid histories of corruption allegations, unexplained wealth, and documented complicity in grand larceny—stand before the Nigerian people and preach integrity? How can Tinubu's supporters, who scream to high heaven claiming they care about corruption, look themselves in the mirror and reconcile their righteous indignation with their unwavering loyalty to a leader whose entire political career is a monument to unanswered questions?
The hypocrisy is breathtaking. And it is time we called it what it is.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has once again gone to a United States court to block the release of his drug-related forfeiture records. In 1993, Tinubu forfeited $460,000 to the US government in a civil forfeiture case linked to he**in trafficking. The US Department of Justice alleged that a Nigeria-based he**in network moved drugs to Chicago, with proceeds deposited into accounts linked to Tinubu. He was never criminally convicted—let us be precise about that. But the civil settlement speaks for itself. Now, more than three decades later, Tinubu is spending legal resources to keep those records buried. He has joined the Department of Justice's bid to delay a Freedom of Information Act disclosure that would shed light on that investigation. If there is nothing to hide, why is he fighting so hard to keep the truth from seeing the light of day? Why does a man who demands transparency from opponents invest so heavily in obscurity abroad?
This is the same man whose vast wealth remains a mystery to the Nigerian people. Tinubu's net worth is estimated between $3 billion and $4.5 billion, yet he has no known public asset declaration record. In December 2024, he said, "I will consider asking the CCB to release my assets." He has not done so. The Financial Times noted that "it does not help that Tinubu's vast wealth is not easy to decipher." The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project named him second runner-up for "2024 Person of the Year in Organised Crime and Corruption." These are not the credentials of a man who should be lecturing anyone on integrity.
Then there is the matter of his academic credentials. The certificate Tinubu submitted to INEC is inconsistent with Chicago State University certificates issued in 1979. A US court ordered CSU to release his academic records during the 2023 election dispute. His National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate has also been called into question. These are not minor discrepancies. These are fundamental questions about the authenticity of the documents that qualified him to lead Africa's most populous nation.
But Tinubu's personal record is only the beginning. Let us examine the men he has chosen to surround himself with—the same men who now lecture Nigerians on fiscal responsibility while their own hands are stained with allegations that would make a seasoned criminal blush.
Consider Femi Gbajabiamila, Tinubu's Chief of Staff. The man who oversees the President's office has been accused of illegally diverting ₦54 billion in oil and gas royalty funds using a "fake law." He has been accused of obtaining a ₦400 million bribe to provide an appointment letter in the now-infamous PFIPC scandal. He was allegedly debarred in the United States for stealing $25,000 from a client in Georgia. The ICPC has questioned him, but no comprehensive public investigation has been announced. This is not accountability. This is a whitewash.
Consider Godswill Akpabio, the Senate President. The man who presides over the National Assembly has been accused of shielding the NNPC from scrutiny due to his daughter's employment there without a regular interview process. He was invited by the House over alleged ₦40 billion in irregular expenditures by the NDDC. SERAP has sued him for failing to investigate claims that lawmakers pay ₦1 million to ₦3 million to introduce bills. These are not minor infractions. These are systemic rot manifesting at the highest levels of government. And yet, Akpabio remains in his position, untouched by any meaningful investigation.
Consider Abubakar Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning. The US Department of Justice alleged Bagudu played an "instrumental role" in Sani Abacha's plundering of billions from Nigeria. He spent six months in a US jail awaiting extradition. The Pandora Papers revealed that from 2010, a London law firm helped Bagudu and his brother transfer 98 million euros—about $120 million—from an offshore trust. In 2018, the Buhari administration agreed to pay Bagudu $110 million from recovered Abacha loot for his "peaceful enjoyment." Let that sink in. A man accused of helping steal billions was paid over a hundred million dollars to enjoy his stolen wealth peacefully. And Tinubu appointed him Minister of Budget and Economic Planning. Transparency International slammed the nomination. The US government's human rights report noted that Tinubu appointed Bagudu "despite Bagudu's widely reported history of helping then-President Sani Abacha steal hundreds of millions of dollars."
And let us not forget Tinubu's relationship with the Chagoury family. The Chagourys—Gilbert and Ronald—are Lebanese-Nigerian billionaire businessmen who have long been associated with Tinubu. In 2016, the Chagourys pleaded guilty in a US court to laundering money for the late Sani Abacha, admitting to conspiring to move millions from the Abacha regime's looted funds. They agreed to forfeit $27.5 million and were placed on probation. Despite this sordid history, the Chagourys remain close to Tinubu. They have reportedly financed his political campaigns and continue to enjoy access to the highest levels of his administration. In 2024, the Chagoury Group secured multi-billion-naira contracts from the Tinubu administration. How does a man who claims to fight corruption surround himself with individuals convicted of money laundering? How does he justify awarding contracts to associates with such a notorious past?
These are the men Tinubu trusts to run Nigeria. These are the men who lecture us on fiscal responsibility while their own records read like a criminal encyclopedia.
But the corruption does not end with individuals. Under Tinubu's watch, the fake Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council—a completely fictitious government agency with no legal basis—operated with an office in the Federal Secretariat, civil servants assigned to it, and a website on the official ".gov.ng" domain. It secured a ₦1.3 billion budget allocation in the 2026 Appropriation Act. Its director won approval to hire over 300 staff. How does a phantom agency pe*****te the nation's budget without insider collaboration? President Tinubu ordered the ICPC to investigate. But who within his circle is responsible? The police have launched a manhunt for the agency's director, but the deeper questions remain unanswered.
The National Assembly, under Tinubu's watch, inserted 11,122 dubious projects worth ₦6.93 trillion into the 2025 budget. A Federal High Court in Lagos declared the National Assembly's ₦110 billion expenditure on vehicles and lawmakers' allowances unlawful—₦40 billion for 465 vehicles at about ₦86 million each, and ₦70 billion in "support allowances" for newly elected members. The court ruled the spending breached the Public Procurement Act and involved self-dealing and conflict of interest. No one has been investigated. No one has been prosecuted. The money is gone, and the Nigerian people are left to wonder who exactly is minding the store.
Minister Betta Edu was suspended over the alleged diversion of N585 million in public funds into a private bank account. A separate scandal involved N37 billion in fraud under the National Social Investment Programme Agency, which falls under her ministry. She was suspended, but what has happened since? Where is the prosecution? Where is the recovery of funds? Where is the accountability?
And yet, despite this litany of corruption allegations, Tinubu's supporters continue to scream to high heaven claiming they care about corruption. They point fingers at opposition figures. They demand investigations into their political opponents. They lecture the nation on integrity. But when the spotlight turns to their own leader, they retreat to a familiar defensive posture: "It did not begin with Tinubu." They acknowledge the severity of the country's condition—widespread poverty, rising insecurity, eroding purchasing power—but fail to understand why anyone would conclude that the government has failed. They can perceive the crisis but cannot comprehend why it should be attributed to the current administration. They can see the darkness but cannot understand why the man holding the torch is being blamed for the absence of light.
There are two syndromes that define this administration and its defenders. The first is Chronic Bwala Syndrome—a condition characterized by the shameless maintenance of irreconcilable public positions, habitual denial of documented facts, and refusal to accept responsibility despite overwhelming evidence of contradiction. The sufferer holds contradictory positions simultaneously, denies previous statements despite recorded evidence, refuses to acknowledge errors, persists in falsehoods even when publicly disproved, and prioritizes political convenience over consistency and accountability. It is contradiction without conscience.
The second is Comprehension Deficiency Syndrome—a paradoxical condition in which the sufferer acknowledges the severity of the country's condition but fails to understand why anyone would conclude that the government has failed. They look at 139 million Nigerians in poverty and agree it is a crisis. They look at 30 million facing hunger and express appropriate horror. They look at 4,654 violent deaths and shake their heads in dismay. But when the conversation turns to accountability, they retreat to defense. They can perceive the crisis but cannot comprehend why it should be attributed to the current administration. They can see the darkness but cannot understand why the man holding the torch is being blamed for the absence of light.
These two syndromes are frequently comorbid. A Chronic Bwala Syndrome sufferer denies reality because it is politically convenient. A Comprehension Deficiency Syndrome sufferer acknowledges reality but denies the implications because they cannot separate the crisis from their loyalty to the administration. Together, they form a perfect political pathology: a leader who contradicts evidence surrounded by supporters who accept the evidence but refuse to connect it to the leadership.
To be a Tinubu supporter in 2026, one must suffer from both syndromes simultaneously. You must look at a man who forfeited $460,000 in a drug-related case and see a reformer. You must look at a man of unexplained billions with no asset declaration and see transparency. You must look at a Chief of Staff accused of diverting ₦54 billion and see integrity. You must look at a Senate President accused of shielding the NNPC and see accountability. You must look at a Minister implicated in the Abacha loot and see fiscal responsibility. You must look at the Chagourys—men convicted of laundering Abacha's loot—and see legitimate business partners. You must look at a fake government agency stealing ₦1.3 billion and see a minor administrative oversight. You must look at ₦110 billion illegally spent by the National Assembly and see prudent management. You must look at a nation where 139 million people live on less than $3 a day and see economic success.
You cannot demand transparency from opponents while supporting a leader who invests so heavily in keeping his own history obscured. You cannot lecture the nation on corruption while surrounding yourself with individuals whose own corruption allegations read like a criminal encyclopedia. You cannot claim to care about the rule of law while fighting tooth and nail to keep American courts from revealing your past. You cannot scream to high heaven about integrity while sitting comfortably in a villa built on a foundation of unanswered questions.
The nation is bleeding. The data is irrefutable. The hypocrisy is unmistakable. And we are left to wonder: in a country where the leadership suffers from Chronic Bwala Syndrome and the supporters suffer from Comprehension Deficiency Syndrome, who exactly is left to see the light?
Mohammed Bello Doka can be reached via [email protected]
Abuja Network News
