El-Rufai: Tinubu is gone, has 91 percent disapproval ratings in North, Southeast
Nasir El-Rufai criticises President Bola Tinubu.
Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has launched a scathing attack on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, declaring that the current administration has lost the trust of the Nigerian people and is “practically finished.”
Speaking during an appearance on Arise TV Prime Time on June 24, 2025, El-Rufai cited internal polls showing that Tinubu’s disapproval ratings have hit a staggering 91 percent in both the North and the Southeast regions of the country.
According to El-Rufai, the administration has failed across critical sectors, including security, economic management, and trade development. He argued that Nigerians are not experiencing any meaningful improvements in their lives since President Tinubu assumed office on May 29, 2023. “If your life has not gotten better in the last two years,” he said, “why not give someone else a chance?”
The former governor, who has grown increasingly critical of Tinubu in recent months, noted that even in Lagos—widely considered the president’s political stronghold—the numbers are dismal. He claimed that the president’s approval rating in Lagos stands at just 22 percent, and that no single state in the Southwest shows Tinubu commanding more than 50 percent support. He described the figures as a clear reflection of national disappointment.
El-Rufai didn’t stop at public perception. He pointed fingers at the administration’s policy performance, accusing it of raising enormous revenues without translating those gains into tangible development for the average Nigerian. “They are generating lots of revenues,” he said, “but we don’t know where those revenues are going.” He also slammed the Tinubu government for what he called the absence of a coherent economic direction, especially in trade and investment.
His comments come amid a noticeable shift in Nigeria’s political climate. Once a prominent member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), El-Rufai is now believed to be working closely with the Social Democratic Party (SDP), and has hinted at forming a coalition strong enough to challenge Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027. In May 2025, he publicly declared that it would be “impossible” for the president to secure a second term, citing widespread dissatisfaction and lack of trust.
El-Rufai’s remarks have reignited conversations around the political future of President Tinubu, especially as the country continues to battle economic hardship and insecurity. While the presidency has not formally responded to his comments, Minister of Works David Umahi had earlier dismissed El-Rufai’s criticism, insisting that the president’s achievements speak for themselves and that no viable alternative currently exists.
Nevertheless, the former governor’s assertion—that President Tinubu has already lost the moral and political capital needed for a second term—reflects growing unrest within the political elite. If the poll figures cited by El-Rufai are accurate, the ruling party may face an uphill battle to regain public confidence ahead of the 2027 general elections.