The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the forthcoming 2027 general elections, Prince Adewole Adebayo, has declared that four years is enough for a determined government to transform Nigeria, urging voters to reject what he described as the country’s “politics of comedy and clowning.”
Adebayo made the declaration on Tuesday in Abuja while unveiling the SDP’s 2027–2031 policy document, titled “Farewell to Poverty and Insecurity.”
He described the document as a comprehensive blueprint for tackling Nigeria’s security, economic and infrastructure challenges.
Adebayo said many of the country’s problems were man-made and could be addressed through purposeful leadership, competent governance and policies that promote productivity rather than dependence.
According to him, “four years is enough for a determined leader to help his people,” insisting that an SDP administration would use its first term to fundamentally alter the country’s economic and security fortunes.
He challenged Nigerians to scrutinise the party’s manifesto and hold it accountable to the promises contained in the document.
According to him, “We are trying to tell Nigerians that we are beyond sloganeering. We are saying to you: here is our farewell to poverty and insecurity.
“We have submitted our thesis to Nigerians. Mark us. Evaluate us. Contradict us,” he said.
The SDP candidate also challenged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to a public debate, asking him to account for his administration’s performance since assuming office.
Adebayo questioned the utilisation of funds he said were saved from the removal of petrol subsidy and demanded explanations on government spending on security, compressed natural gas (CNG) and electricity.
According to him, “The first challenge is thrown to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu: come out of hiding. Come and debate.
“Anyone who wants to keep his job should be able to answer his bosses. Where have you been in the past four years? What have you been doing? Where is the money?
“Where is the money you saved from subsidies that never existed? Where are the trillions for security? Where is the CNG? Where is the electricity?”
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Adebayo also criticised the nation’s monetary management, accusing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of failing to adequately protect the naira, promote productivity and generate employment.
According to him, “the Central Bank of Nigeria is not protecting our currency. It is not creating productivity and employment. It has become a warehouse for thieves. We must kick the thieves out of the team,” he alleged.
He further accused some officials of mismanaging revenues from petroleum, solid minerals and taxation, alleging that public resources were being “stolen in broad daylight.”
On insecurity, Adebayo said an SDP government would combine military action with political, economic and social interventions to address the root causes of crime and insurgency.
He argued that government failure had contributed significantly to insecurity and that changing the government through the ballot in 2027 would be a major step towards defeating banditry.
According to him, “since the majority of insecurity is caused by government failure, when you use your vote in 2027 to change the government, you have already gone 60 per cent of the way towards chasing away the bandits”.
Adebayo also promised to promote national unity and tackle what he described as “internal colonialism”, which he said had encouraged Nigerians to turn against one another along ethnic, religious and regional lines.
On the economy, he promised a major expansion of electricity generation, with a target of 75,000 megawatts using Nigeria’s available resources.
He also pledged to establish four functioning public refineries and 36 modular refineries, while creating an enabling environment for private investors to establish additional refineries and export petroleum products.
The SDP candidate said his administration would review petrol pricing, arguing that Nigerians should not be subjected to international fuel prices when their wages remained far below international standards.
According to him, “That is why we calculated it and concluded that ₦200, at the current rate, is the price at which petrol can be sold without pushing the people further into poverty,”
He said the SDP manifesto would focus on human development, dignity of citizenship and affordable infrastructure financed from Nigeria’s resources.
Adebayo also lamented the decline in workers’ purchasing power, noting that previous generations were able to build houses and educate their children on incomes that were considerably lower than those required to survive in today’s economy.
“We are 26 years late. We need to be in government now,” he said.
Speaking earlier, the party’s National Chairman, Prof. Sadiq Umar Gombe, said the manifesto was built around three interconnected pillars: security, productivity and prosperity.
Gombe said the party would secure lives and property while simultaneously addressing the economic and social conditions that fuel crime, extremism and instability.
He said the SDP would strengthen the armed forces, police, intelligence agencies, border control and justice system while deploying both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies against insecurity.
According to him, the party’s economic programme would promote self-reliance, productive employment, poverty reduction, balanced regional development and social inclusion.
“We do not believe that poverty should be managed in Nigeria.
“We believe poverty must be eliminated through production, employment, opportunity and responsible social protection,” he said.
Gombe also stressed the need for accountability in public office, declaring that citizens must be able to demand answers from their leaders.
“Accountability is not an inconvenience to governance. Accountability is governance itself,” he said.
He said the SDP wanted to build a Nigeria where farmers could cultivate their land without fear, traders could transport their goods safely, businesses could invest with confidence and citizens could live, work, worship and travel without fear.
Also speaking, the SDP vice-presidential candidate, Dr Usman Bugaje, said the country’s fundamental problem was not a shortage of capable citizens but poor leadership.
Bugaje pointed to the achievements of Nigerians in the diaspora as evidence that Nigerians possessed the skills and capacity required to build a prosperous nation.
According to him, “If you look at Nigerians in the diaspora, they are doing very well. Go to any country and you will find Nigerian professionals performing at par with their counterparts. In many cases, they are excelling in their chosen fields.
“That tells us something very important: the problem is not the Nigerian people. The problem is leadership,” he said.
Bugaje described the manifesto as a commitment to Nigerians and a “living document” that would be refined through continued engagement with citizens.
He said the document addressed the country’s major development challenges, particularly insecurity, productivity and prosperity.
He also identified low agricultural productivity and high energy costs as major constraints to national development, arguing that Nigeria could significantly improve food production by adopting proven agricultural methods and developing value chains.
Bugaje said expensive energy affected virtually every sector, including transportation, agriculture and manufacturing.
“We know precisely where the problems are, and I think we will, with the support of Nigeria, address them,” he said.
He, however, acknowledged that implementing the SDP agenda would face resistance from entrenched interests benefiting from the existing system.
“They are going to fight. But we shall fight. And we shall win. And we shall deliver, God willing,” Bugaje declared.