Makinde campaign faults Tinubu’s silence over alleged payments for ministerial posts
Makinde campaign faults Tinubu’s silence over alleged payments for ministerial posts
The Makinde-Daura Presidential Campaign Organisation (MDPCO), on the platform of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s silence over allegations that serving ministers paid billions of naira to secure their appointments.
It called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the matter.
The organisation said the alleged payments, reportedly disclosed by Alwan Hassan, a spokesperson for the Tinubu Presidential Campaign Council, raised serious questions about transparency, accountability and the integrity of ministerial appointments under the current administration.
In a statement on Tuesday, signed by its Director of Strategic Communications, Richard Nnanna Ihediwa, the campaign organisation said the Presidency’s failure to address the allegation, five days after it was reportedly made on national television, had heightened public concerns about possible corruption at the highest levels of government.
It urged the EFCC to launch an independent investigation, identify anyone involved and ensure that those found culpable were prosecuted in accordance with the law.
The MDPCO said: “Our demand for an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) probe is predicated on growing concerns of high-level complicity following the disquieting silence of the Tinubu Presidency, five days after the revelation was made on national TV.”
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Hassan was reported to have said that some ministers paid billions of naira to secure their appointments and subsequently prioritised recouping their alleged investments.
The campaign organisation argued that, if substantiated, the allegation would raise fundamental concerns about whether public offices were being treated as commodities rather than positions of public trust.
It, however, did not identify the ministers allegedly involved or provide independent evidence to establish that the reported payments occurred.
The organisation also questioned whether the President’s silence reflected an inability to address alleged wrongdoing within his administration or a willingness to tolerate it.
It said: “Whichever be the case, the fact that President Tinubu is running a hopeless administration where, as a leader on whose desk the buck stops, he could not address such scandalous revelation in his administration exposes an alarming condoning of corruption.”
The MDPCO further alleged that political interests and powerful individuals within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had compromised governance, contributing to the appointment of people it described as unsuitable for public office.
It linked the allegations to what it characterised as worsening insecurity, economic hardship and inadequate infrastructure, arguing that public resources should be directed towards improving citizens’ welfare rather than serving private interests.
The organisation also cited Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit, which it put at $2.3 trillion, and the estimated $100 billion required annually over the next 30 years to address it.
The campaign group warned that the allegation should not be allowed to disappear without a thorough investigation, insisting that the anti-corruption agency had a responsibility to establish the facts and determine whether any laws had been breached.
It also urged Nigerians not to lose confidence in the country, saying the 2027 presidential election offered an opportunity to demand greater transparency and accountability from political leaders.
The MDPCO said its proposed four-year RESET NIGERIA agenda, under a Seyi Makinde-led APM government of national unity, would prioritise transparency, credible governance, service delivery and citizens’ welfare.
It called on Nigerians to support Makinde in the January 16, 2027 presidential election, arguing that the country needed leadership committed to openness, integrity and the common good.
