Don’t fall for Tinubu’s desperate tricks, Timi Frank warns Nigerians

Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, has sounded a strong warning to Nigerians, urging them not to fall for what he described as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s “desperate tricks” to secure a second term in 2027.

In a statement issued Wednesday in Abuja, Frank accused Tinubu of employing blackmail, intimidation, and ethnic manipulation in a bid to consolidate his grip on power.

He called on northern and southern leaders, along with opposition parties, to resist Tinubu’s alleged maneuvers ahead of the next presidential election.

According to Frank, Tinubu is simultaneously blackmailing southern opposition governors—particularly those in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)—while threatening to declare states of emergency in their regions under the pretext of violence or corruption should they refuse to align with him.

“He has increased the intensity now by blackmailing, intimidating, and putting at least five PDP Governors from the South under duress to defect along with their National Assembly members to the APC,” Frank alleged.

He contended that Tinubu’s political strategy for 2027 is centered on framing the contest as “Tinubu versus the North,” aiming to rally the South behind him through “manipulation and subterfuge,” despite having relied on northern support to win the 2023 election.

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Frank, a Bayelsa-born political activist and ambassador of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) to East Africa and the Middle East, stressed that 2027 should not be about regional identity but about finding a leader capable of addressing Nigeria’s mounting crises—ranging from widespread insecurity to economic hardship worsened by recent government policies such as the removal of fuel subsidies, increased electricity tariffs, and surging food prices.

“Nigerians are in need of a president who will help Nigeria become better, not a ‘Northern candidate’ or a ‘Southern candidate,’” he said.

“The country is already overcharged with divisions along ethnic lines. We cannot afford a president who fans the flames of division for personal ambition.”

Frank called on northern leaders and citizens to reassess their support for Tinubu, warning that the North has been “grossly sidelined” under his administration, particularly in terms of appointments and infrastructure development.

“The North that helped Tinubu rise to power in 2023 is today suffering the most under his government. If they fail to act now, they will face even greater neglect should Tinubu return to power in 2027,” he said.

Frank further claimed that at least five opposition governors are being pressured to defect to the APC under the threat of political persecution, while those who choose to stay are reportedly being forced to sign undertakings to deliver their states to Tinubu in the next election or risk losing their second terms.

“Tinubu does not believe in the power of the people. He is working to steal the 2027 election like he did in 2023,” Frank alleged.

He accused the President of sowing discord within opposition parties, notably the PDP and Labour Party, to cripple credible challengers ahead of the polls.

He criticized what he described as Nigeria being on “auto-pilot” under Tinubu’s leadership and urged Nigerians to mobilize legally to reject his bid for re-election.