By Musa Bakare.
In politics, perception often shapes reality, and few Nigerian leaders understand this better than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. His calm and unassuming outlook has become one of his most effective political weapons, a quiet strength that continues to confuse the opposition and comfort the nation.
From his early days in the pro-democracy movement to his rise as President, Asiwaju Tinubu has never been a leader of theatrics. He doesn’t shout to be heard; he works to be understood. While his critics rely on drama, his genius lies in strategy, in building structures that outlast slogans.
His opponents mistake his composure for weakness, his patience for passivity, and his silence for indecision. Yet behind that calm exterior is one of the most calculating and disciplined political minds in Nigeria’s modern history.
Since 2023, the opposition has struggled to interpret President Tinubu’s leadership style. They expected a populist obsessed with applause; they got a reformer focused on outcomes. They saw age as a disadvantage; they forgot that discipline is the true measure of stamina.
Immediately after assuming office, President Tinubu dismantled the fraudulent fuel subsidy, unified the exchange rate, revived the steel and industrial sectors, and launched a massive infrastructure drive. These are not the moves of a tired politician; they are the signature of a reformist determined to rebuild Nigeria’s foundations.
In a political space addicted to noise, President Tinubu’s restraint is revolutionary. He rarely responds to insults or engages in media battles. Instead, he channels his energy toward results. His silence frustrates the opposition because it denies them the attention they crave.
While they rant about hardship, he focuses on the long term cure for economic decay. While they stir emotion, he strengthens institutions. His silence, far from weakness, is the discipline of a strategist who understands that leadership is not a contest of volume but of vision.
Little did the opposition realized that the Nigerian voter has changed. Nigerians now judge leaders not by how loud they shout, but by how much they deliver. The opposition continues to misread this new reality, clinging to emotional politics, social media theatrics, and sentimental campaigns that yield no real votes.
President Tinubu, on the other hand, is building tangible results: roads, rails, refineries, ports, power projects, and industrial corridors. His reforms are purposeful. The Nigeria he is shaping will reward productivity, not dependency.
Those who doubted Asiwaju Tinubu in Lagos two decades ago later admitted his genius. He built a city that could fund itself, govern itself, and plan decades ahead. That same model of reform, discipline, and institution building is now being replicated at the national level.
The opposition mocked him in Lagos and lost. They mocked him in the run-up to the 2023 Presidential election, and they failed woefully. Ahead of the 2027 election, they are mocking him again, and history will very well repeat itself.
President Tinubu’s greatest strength is that he allows his work to speak while others waste words. His unassuming outlook is not a weakness; it is a strategy. He understands that true leadership is not about appearing powerful; it is about delivering power, prosperity, and progress to the people.
The opposition’s biggest undoing is their failure to realize that, under President Tinubu leadership, Nigeria has moved on from emotional politics to result based governance. By the time they understand this new reality, the calm man they mocked will have built the Nigeria they could only talk about.
– Musa Asiru Bakare, member APC, political analyst, writes from Lokoja, Kogi State.
