Adebayo warns Nigerians: Don’t swap Tinubu for same old faces
By Henry Nnaemeka
The 2023 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Adewole Adebayo, has cautioned Nigerians against embracing what he described as “recycled politicians” emerging as opposition figures ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking in an interview at the weekend, Adebayo said many of the politicians now presenting themselves as opposition leaders were part of past administrations responsible for Nigeria’s current challenges.
He argued that replacing the administration of President Bola Tinubu with politicians who previously held power without addressing key national problems would not deliver the change Nigerians desire.
According to him, several figures now positioning themselves as champions of reform had earlier occupied positions where they could have improved governance and strengthened democratic institutions but failed to do so.
“You cannot claim to oppose corruption or bad governance and then align with the same people who created the problem,” he said.
Adebayo also criticised some opposition politicians who recently moved to the African Democratic Congress, noting that many of them spent years in government without introducing meaningful reforms.
He said some of those now criticising the current administration had previously ignored opportunities to strengthen democratic institutions, including reforms to the country’s electoral laws.
“If you were in the Senate for 20 years and didn’t sponsor a single progressive law to improve elections, you cannot suddenly present yourself as the champion of electoral reform,” he said.
The SDP chieftain said his party would not align with such politicians, stressing that doing so would contradict the principles it claims to uphold.
“If I work with them as presently constituted, then I am a hypocrite because these same people represent the bad governance we are fighting,” he said.
Adebayo added that Nigeria’s political future should not be reduced to a contest among elite politicians but should be driven by ordinary citizens seeking genuine reform.
He stressed that the focus of the opposition should be on presenting credible leaders and workable policies rather than forming coalitions aimed solely at defeating the ruling All Progressives Congress.
“You cannot remove one group responsible for the problem and replace them with another group that helped create the same problem,” he added.
