former presidential candidate Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has described ethnic rhetoric being deployed by some opposition politicians as obsolete and harmful to Nigeria’s unity and development.
He rebuked those opposition politicians employing ethnic tactics to gain political advantage.
In a statement, Olawepo-Hashim warned that the continued deployment of ethnic sentiments in political discourse is a distraction from the pressing issues confronting the nation.
He called for a shift toward solution-driven engagement that addresses Nigeria’s economic collapse, rampant insecurity, and foreign policy failures.
“Those still stuck in the old game of ethnic blackmail should understand that Nigerians have outgrown that playbook. The people are looking for competent leadership, not ethnic champions,” he declared.
Olawepo-Hashim expressed particular concern over recent attempts to brand the administration of President Bola Tinubu as a “Yoruba government,” dismissing such claims as both baseless and ironic.
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“President Tinubu struggled to win support even among his own ethnic group,” he said.
“He lost Lagos—arguably the heart of the Yoruba political base—in the 2023 presidential election. So, on what ground is anyone now calling this a tribal government?” he asked.
The former presidential hopeful also accused some of Tinubu’s former allies—who were instrumental in his rise to power—of now resorting to ethnic incitement because their personal ambitions were unmet.
“It is pure hypocrisy. You cannot install a government and then disown it on ethnic grounds when your expectations aren’t fulfilled,” he asserted.
To reinforce his argument, Olawepo-Hashim cited historic instances where Nigerian voters defied ethnic lines in favor of leadership they believed in.
His words: “In 1993, Kano voters chose Moshood Abiola, a Yoruba man, over their kinsman Bashir Tofa. In 2023, Lagosians voted for Peter Obi, an Igbo candidate, over Tinubu. Yet, they returned Governor Sanwo-Olu of the APC. Nigerians are far more politically mature than many politicians assume.”