A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, has accused President Bola Tinubu of lying in his New Year message and warned that the President will continue to do so throughout 2026.
Okonkwo made the remarks on Friday during an appearance on Sunrise Daily, a programme on Channels Television, where he responded to Tinubu’s New Year message to Nigerians.
He said he was disappointed by the content of the president’s address and described several claims as untrue.
“Well, the government of Tinubu cannot cease to continue to surprise me. Each time I think they’ve reached the limit of incompetence, they still blow that limit,” he stated.
The ADC chieftain took issue with Tinubu’s assertion that 2026 would mark “the beginning of a more robust phase of economic growth,” calling it an admission of failure.
“First of all, he said 2026 marks the beginning of a more robust phase of economic growth. I was offended by that phrase, the beginning. Almost three years into the regime of the government. Obviously, that’s an admission of failure, because he has actually not begun anything,” Okonkwo said.
He also contested the president’s claim about inflation figures.
“You saw how he embarrassed the world by saying that inflation has come down to 15%. Let me state that clearly as a white lie,” Okonkwo argued.
Okonkwo contrasted official statistics with his personal experience of rising costs.
“Before Tinubu came in, the highest he could pay for a flight ticket from Abuja to Enugu was ₦57,000. But going to Enugu, I paid ₦250,000 for a flight ticket, which is almost a 500% increase, and the President is sitting down in a New Year message, telling Nigerians about the rebased fraudulent inflation figure. It’s embarrassing and very annoying,” he said.
Okonkwo wrapped up his critique with a warning, drawing on a cultural maxim about honesty at the start of a new year.
“And when we were growing up, we were told not to lie on New Year’s Day. That means we expect that this President and this government is going to lie throughout the year,” he said.