Akpabio Accuses Tinubu Critics on Social Media of Being Paid, Urges Northern Youths to Mobilise for 2027

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has accused some social media users criticising President Bola Tinubu and his supporters of receiving payment for their activities, urging youths in Northern Nigeria to intensify grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Akpabio made the remarks on Wednesday when members of the Arewa Revival Project, a youth group representing the 19 northern states, visited him at his office at the National Assembly in Abuja.

The delegation, led by its coordinator, Mustafa Ibrahim, presented an award to the Senate President in recognition of what it described as his contributions to national development and nation-building.

While thanking the group for the recognition, Akpabio encouraged its members to engage young Nigerians at the grassroots and explain why, in his view, continuity under the Tinubu administration would benefit the country.

He alleged that some people attacking the President and his supporters online were being paid, arguing that those who were not receiving such payments might struggle to match their opponents’ activity on social media.

“It is not going to be easy for you because most of those who are attacking the President and attacking these young men on social media are being paid. You are not being paid,” Akpabio said.

He advised the youths to organise meetings and engage their peers directly, urging them to counter what he described as propaganda against the government.

“Once in a while, gather the youth together and let them see the truth and know the truth. That attacking government that is working well for them, trying to bring uncertainty is not the best,” he added.

Akpabio also defended Tinubu’s economic policies, including the administration’s tax reforms, arguing that the government was working to reduce Nigeria’s dependence on crude oil and broaden the economy’s sources of revenue.

According to the Senate President, the administration had introduced changes intended to modernise outdated laws and encourage economic diversification.

He described Tinubu’s performance as significant and said members of the National Assembly were proud of the President’s record. Akpabio also stated that the President had received their endorsement for a second term.

“No President has achieved the level of development that he has done in this country today since independence,” he said, adding that the government was confronting difficult challenges.

Akpabio’s remarks come as political parties and interest groups prepare for the 2027 general election, in which Tinubu is expected to seek re-election under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Senate President urged the northern youth group to take an active role in the political process and campaign for the President, maintaining that the administration’s policies were designed to secure a better future for younger Nigerians.

He also addressed the country’s security challenges, expressing optimism that ongoing constitutional reform efforts could pave the way for the establishment of state police.

Akpabio said the constitutional amendment process was approaching completion and claimed that about 30 state Houses of Assembly had endorsed the proposal to decentralise policing.

“As I speak with you now, for the first time in the history of Nigeria, it may not take us a month before we have a state police system, decentralised policing in the country,” he said.

The proposed state police system has remained a major issue in Nigeria’s constitutional reform debate. Supporters argue that allowing states to establish their own police forces could improve responses to local security threats, while questions remain over oversight, funding and the potential for political interference.

Akpabio expressed confidence that improved security arrangements would help address the country’s insecurity, encouraging the youths to remain optimistic as they mobilised support for Tinubu.

Earlier, Ibrahim said the group considered Akpabio deserving of the award because of his contributions to national development and what it described as the achievements of the National Assembly under his leadership.