By Musa Bakare
In the Nigerian democratic landscape, where ambition often overwhelms vision and power is frequently confused with governance, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stands apart as a strategist-statesman. His mastery of power lies not in its acquisition but in its intelligent deployment. Like Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who turned ideology into policy, President Tinubu has turned strategy into structure.
He understands that politics, to endure, must rest on systems, not sentiments. From the trenches of the pro-democracy struggle in the 1990s to his current role as President, he has demonstrated an uncommon understanding of timing, organization, and human management. Every major decision he makes is guided by the long view, the belief that leadership is not about applause but about legacy.
Nigeria’s political history is filled with leaders who survived their times but failed to build enduring systems. Some former leaders before him survived crises but left institutional confusion, while others stabilized democracy but centralized power excessively. President Tinubu, on the other hand, is translating survival into systemic stability.
As Governor of Lagos State (1999–2007), he faced fierce opposition from the federal centre, especially under President Olusegun Obasanjo. Yet rather than capitulate, Asiwaju Tinubu restructured Lagos into a self-reliant entity. He introduced reforms in taxation, created the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, and built the foundation for sustainable governance.
Today, Lagos generates more internally than most Nigerian states combined proof that his approach to power is rooted in productivity, not patronage.
At the federal level, that same system, building mindset is at work. Through fiscal reforms, digital tax administration, and renewed federal state synergy, President Tinubu is laying the groundwork for a more self sustaining federation.
His ability to form and sustain alliances across ethnic, regional, and ideological divides is unmatched in the Fourth Republic. He inherited the political fragmentation that followed the death of Chief M.K.O. Abiola and the collapse of the SDP, he built bridges where others saw barriers.
His creation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013 was a masterclass in coalition building, uniting the old Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), and parts of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). This was the same kind of political engineering that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe attempted in the 1960s but could not sustain.
By 2015, Asiwaju Tinubu’s alliance dethroned the long dominant People’s Democratic Party (PDP), a feat unseen since Nigeria’s independence. He didn’t stop there. As President, he has maintained cohesion within the APC, integrating young reformers, empowering state governors, and ensuring that loyalty is rewarded with responsibility.
Ahead of the 2027 election, this balance between inclusion and discipline is what is keeping the APC and his political machine alive and stable.
Few Nigerian leaders have dared to confront entrenched interests as President Tinubu has. In 1978, General Obasanjo attempted market liberalization but retreated under pressure. In 1986, General Ibrahim Babangida introduced the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) but without the institutional discipline to sustain it.
President Tinubu, however, went further. In his very first week in office, he removed the fuel subsidy, a drain that had cost Nigeria over ₦16 trillion in a decade. He unified the exchange rate, dismantled rent seeking networks, and declared war on fiscal recklessness.
These are not easy decisions. They demand political steel and strategic patience. They also reveal President Tinubu’s understanding that reform is not just about economics but about redefining power itself, shifting it from the hands of cartels to the will of the people.
By embracing short term discomfort for long term gain, President Tinubu has signalled that governance is no longer a stage for populism but a platform for progress.
Nigerian democracy has historically been a theatre of hostility between the ruling class and the opposition. During the First Republic, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Azikiwe clashed ideologically but respected institutions. The Second Republic saw opposition reduced to tribal camps. The Fourth Republic, especially under the PDP years, often weaponized state power to crush dissent.
President Tinubu has rewritten that script. He sees opposition not as an enemy but as a necessary check on democracy. His calm response to critics, including former presidents reflects a mature understanding that democracy thrives on engagement, not ego. His political inclusivity, from appointing technocrats and youths into key offices to engaging former opponents constructively, represents a democratic sophistication rare in Nigeria’s political culture.
He is reviving the Chief Awolowo tradition of meritocracy, governance based on competence, not convenience. He rewards loyalty but insists on results. This blend of firmness and flexibility is how institutions grow stronger under his watch.
The Renewed Hope Agenda is not a mere campaign slogan; it is the blueprint for a developmental democracy. President Tinubu’s approach recalls the visionary pragmatism of Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore and the bold structural reforms of Jerry Rawlings in Ghana. His emphasis on infrastructure, industrialization, and human capital aims to build a Nigeria that produces, not merely consumes.
Through strategic revival of Ajaokuta Steel, new gas infrastructure, roads, and rail projects, President Tinubu is linking Nigeria’s economic geography from the North’s mineral wealth to the South’s maritime assets. His digital-m economy push mirrors Chief Awolowo’s free education policy, both are investments in the next generation.
For the first time in decades, Nigeria’s democracy is being reshaped from an arena of rent seeking to a vehicle for genuine development. The goal is clear, a democracy that delivers.
From his pro democracy NADECO struggle to a quiet period of political mentoring, he has matured into a seasoned leader who knows when to act decisively and when to build consensus. His ability to manage egos within the political elite while keeping focus on national goals is his masterstroke, the essence of strategic leadership.
History will judge President Tinubu not merely by his reforms but by the architecture of governance he leaves behind. In a country once defined by impunity and inconsistency, he is introducing predictability and purpose.
Through courage, strategy, and structure, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is quietly reshaping the destiny of Nigeria’s democracy, transforming it from a fragile experiment into a durable, self-sustaining system of hope, discipline, and national renewal.
– Musa Asiru Bakare, a member of the APC and political analyst, writes from Lokoja, Kogi State.
