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Mr Tunde Doherty is the Chairman of the United Kingdom chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC). He is also the Chairman of the APC Committee of Diaspora Chairmen and Deputy Director 1, Diaspora Mobilisation for the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC)
In this interview with Sunday Sun, the APC chieftain says President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s victory in 2027 is a sure bet for Nigerians, dismissing opposition parties as social media tigers.
There are reports that President Bola Tinubu’s chances are becoming slimmer by the day as opposition parties gain sympathy across regions. What is your take, especially as the Presidential Campaign Council was just inaugurated less than 90 days to the general elections?
Well, if you say the chances of Mr President are becoming slimmer, I would say no. Those saying that are feeding the public with lies.
The opposition parties, as far as I am concerned, have no visibility to withstand the growing followership and political sagacity of Mr President. They don’t even understand what the President has in terms of political strategy.
Yes, the opposition will gang up, but they don’t have the structure. When you talk about President Tinubu, you are talking about almost all the governors in Nigeria ready to work with the President to deliver votes in their various states for the APC.
Election all over the world is local.
The opposition has the right to make people believe they are present. They have the right to market themselves. But the question I always ask is, what can they do better?
For instance, Mr President said earlier that Nigeria was like a country with cancer undergoing chemotherapy. We know there will be pains. That is what the country has just gone through. And you have to give it to this man. In three years, look at what he has been able to achieve.
A lot of people will say there is no money, but the truth is that Nigeria today is like a construction site. Massive construction is on-going across the country and it is a fact that no state is owing salaries.
So, where does the money come from? Is it not from the policies he stood by and took bold decisions on?
The removal of fuel subsidy, the liberalisation of the currency — all these monies are now in the hands of governors, in the hands of local government chairmen and the Federal Government, and they are using it to embark on developmental projects.
A lot of fantastic infrastructural developments are on-going across the states, yet some people still say there is no money.
Do you remember that some years back, Nigeria was borrowing money to pay salaries before President Tinubu came? But today you can see transformation everywhere.
When it comes to election period, people say a lot of unrealistic things. But the truth is Nigeria has been through a lot and going forward, we know we are on the right path.
Those of us in the Diaspora know sincerely that what Mr President is doing is in the best interest of Nigerians. It might be tough, we all know that. Reforms are always tough.
If we compare the present reforms to what is happening in the Western world, those of us in the Diaspora know it is not easy out there. Things are hard.
How much are we buying fuel in Nigeria? I am in Nigeria presently and I bought fuel yesterday at N1,375. But in the United Kingdom where I live, fuel is over two pounds for diesel and almost two pounds for petrol. So when you compare that to what is obtainable here, you will see we are better off.
Recently the President introduced a fuel discount, but many say that has not made any significant difference?
A lot of people will say it doesn’t make any significant difference, but in the Western world, one dollar, one pound makes a difference in the lives of people.
For instance, Nigeria is over 230 million people. So if you give N1 to 230 million people, that is N230 million. Multiply that by whatever number you want to give Nigerians and see what that translates to.
Look at the structure of the student loan. It is the best that is applicable anywhere in the world. Anywhere in the world, by the time you start earning, they start deducting directly. Here, it is like a loan you don’t even pay interest on.
You look at the policies of the President and his achievements in three years. This country has been enjoying democracy since 1999, but we just have three years of serious progress.
Anybody who does not want this government should re-examine himself. So for the next election, I believe APC is going to win without any encumbrances.
Yes, the opposition will talk, but I am very sure the next election is for APC and nothing more.
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So what is your organisation, your Diaspora chapter, been up to?
As Chairman of APC UK, Chairman of Committee of Diaspora Chairmen and Deputy Director 1 on Diaspora Mobilisation of the newly inaugurated Presidential Campaign Council, the Diaspora members are bringing in the technology and organisational mobilisation styles obtainable in the Western world — making the media available and entrenching it into not only the people who do the physical legwork from door to door, market to market, house to house to canvass for votes.
Beyond canvassing for votes, they will be talking about the achievements of the President. All of these will be reported by the media. It is like a 24-hour media session powered by the Diaspora, by the African Youth Network.
That is what we have started today. That tells you the youth in Diaspora are ready to support the President because they feel the benefits of this government in terms of student loan, university environment, salaries of lecturers and grants given to institutions. It has never happened in the history of this country.
I remember when I was in the university, the grants they would give you — people were lobbying around it. Even now, there is a lot of international funding coming in that are turning our institutions into productive institutions, not institutions where people just teach and collect money, but institutions that will be innovative, tech-savvy, productive and able to commercialise their products.
Look at all these grants coming in. Look at a lot of great things happening. We just finished a programme in London where we took over 300 innovators from Nigeria to investors in London last week Friday.
It was well attended by investors – 300 inventors — Nigerians who invented one thing or the other in every area of life. Applications, health applications, health machines, a lot of things. The investors were so happy that this is coming from Nigeria. They got a lot of investors who showed interest, not just interest, but ready to invest in these projects. When you talk about 300 inventors, you are talking about 300 ready-to-commercialise products. That is 300 productive, industrious organisations in Nigeria. So what are we talking about? It is because of the ingenuity of Mr President that people have faith in this country.
Everything the President is doing is for the coming generations. If these are not done for the generation of today, they are for tomorrow.
For those who have sense to think about the future, the benefits the coastal road will bring in terms of commercial benefits through that corridor are enormous. There will be a port by the Ogun State Government. Ondo State will also be looking at doing a port around that corridor.
Very soon, we will see an influx of new Nigerian products for export. These are the foundations the President is building.
Many Nigerians believe the President has failed in the area of security. There are still pockets of insecurity across the country. What do you say to that?
Insecurity is everywhere in the world. There is insecurity in London, where I come from. There is insecurity in America.
Yes, there is insecurity in Nigeria. It was worse, but it is not as it used to be if we want to be sincere with ourselves.
The security architecture the President has put in place is really working. No nation is 100 per cent secure. America is doing a lot to secure its interests. In the UK now, the security alert is very high. So everything about security should not be put on the shoulders of one man.
Mr President is putting a lot into securing lives and property of every Nigerian and I think we should give him kudos for that.
As we look forward to the 2027 election, what other areas do you think the President or APC could impact?
Governance is continuous. All we need to do is make people aware of what the President has done, what the President is putting in place for everybody.
It is for people to look forward and benefit from what is already in place. There are soft loans for businesses. There are technical schools for those who want to learn skills. All those things are there. It is just for people to access them. And if you access those opportunities, it will be better for the nation.
Your advice for Nigerians as we approach the 2027 election?
Nigerians should not make any mistake. Use this time to vote for APC. Vote for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the second term.
Your advice for the opposition parties?
They should be sincere to Nigerians. Let Nigerians know that the President is doing the right thing. If you can do better, provide the alternative that will be better than what the President is currently doing.
Are you convinced the opposition is doing its job?
The opposition you are talking about is not visible. They are only on social media. Opposition parties are social media tigers. The social media is just lies upon lies. You can see it.
Nigerians can feel it. There is a lot of fake news out there. A lot of fake people, fake information. Look at somebody saying he wants to return subsidy. He wants to take Nigeria back to Egypt. And that will never happen.
