Nigeria's Political Elites Put Voters on the Hook

Nyesom Wike, Chukwuma Soludo and Ademola Adeleke have joined President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign machinery as coordinators, even though they belong to opposition parties. In her October 17, 2026, essay, Stephanie Shaakaa asked what those appointments mean for voters and what the politicians owe them by way of explanation.

“Different party cards, same pocket,” Shaakaa wrote. Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party will coordinate the FCT and Rivers State; Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance will coordinate Anambra State; and Adeleke of the Accord Party will coordinate Osun State. Their roles place opposition figures within the sitting president’s campaign machinery, leaving voters to ask whether the appointments reflect personal choices or a broader shift in the opposition.

Who Gets to Call It a Mandate

Shaakaa drew a line between cooperating with a president on security, infrastructure and development and helping him win another term. Political alliances are inevitable, she wrote, and politicians shouldn’t be trapped by past affiliations. But changing allegiance doesn’t remove their duty to explain consequential choices to voters.

What achievements convinced Wike, Soludo and Adeleke that Tinubu deserved another term? Shaakaa also asked which shortcomings they accepted and what they expected a second term to achieve. Their campaign roles shouldn’t automatically count as formal endorsements by their parties, she added. Supporters still deserve to know whether the appointments reflect individual decisions or a wider change in opposition politics.

A campaign council can’t establish presidential performance or grant a mandate, Shaakaa wrote. Voters alone can do that. As 2027 approaches, she said, the three politicians, their parties and the ruling APC must explain their positions and defend Tinubu’s record. Campaign machinery can organize support. It can’t speak for voters.

The Budget Has Its Own Gatekeepers

In an October 17, 2026, Daily Trust interview, Associate Professor Babayo Sule of the University of Namibia discussed the power attached to House of Representatives Appropriations Committee chairman Abubakar Bichi’s role. Sule opposed the constituency project system, arguing that development projects should primarily fall to the executive. The legislature, he said, should make and amend laws and oversee the executive, with a clear separation among the three arms of government.

The Appropriations Committee chairman reviews federal spending and proposals from ministries, departments and agencies. Sule said the committee can ask questions, seek explanations and recommend changes before approval. The post also offers access to government institutions, room for negotiation and political engagement, bargaining power over constituency projects and allocations, and national visibility. Still, a chairman’s influence over specific allocations depends on the legislative process, other lawmakers’ positions and executive proposals.

Sule said former President Olusegun Obasanjo reportedly described constituency projects as diverting resources meant for the executive. Former President Goodluck Jonathan also raised concerns about wasted public resources, while former President Muhammadu Buhari reportedly said more than n2 trillion had gone to constituency projects between 1999 and his administration. Sule warned that projects can include village stadiums, conference centres and skills acquisition centres with inadequate equipment.

Scrutiny, Not a Blank Cheque

Sule praised one reported intervention: a June 2026 report said Bichi paid approximately N40 million in tuition or registration fees for 2,423 students at the Federal College of Education (Technical), Bichi, for the first semester of the 2025/2026 academic session. Reports also linked Bichi to an approximately 2,000-unit housing project, school improvements, road construction, skills acquisition centres, an e-library and a mini stadium in Bichi.

Sule called Bichi’s birthday celebration extravagant and opulent amid widespread poverty, including in the constituency he represents. Newspaper advertisements, he said, could cost substantial sums, raising questions about the financial capacity of those involved and their political relationships. But the advertisements alone didn’t prove that anyone sought a favour or that public money paid for the celebration, he cautioned. Those claims need evidence. Public officials’ wealth should be measured against legitimate earnings, salaries, allowances and entitlements.

Sule called for documented decisions, public access to information and investigations into constituency-project spending, delivery, accounting and procurement. He named the Centre for Democracy and Development, BudgIT and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project as civil society organisations working on accountability. He urged constituents to use peaceful, lawful and constitutional means to hold representatives accountable, and said social media can help raise concerns and mobilise public opinion. He also urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and the Code of Conduct Bureau to verify asset declarations and investigate credible allegations, with institutional independence and reliable funding.

Sule urged civil society groups to translate reports into Hausa, Fulfulde, Igbo and Yoruba, then share findings through short video and audio clips. Voters, he said, should choose candidates with records of integrity and public service, monitor their representatives and demand explanations after elections. Accountability doesn’t end at the ballot box. It follows officials who control public budgets.