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Nigeria’s 2027 general election, less than 90 days away, now dominates conversations as incumbent president Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) faces 17 opponents.
Buba Galadima, a prominent Northern politician and an elder statesman, appeared on Channels Television’s Politics Today, which aired on Sept. 26, 2026. Galadima, a chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), made several claims against the Tinubu-led administration.
Galadima, whose involvement in Nigerian partisan politics dates back to the Second Republic, addressed several issues dominating national discourse. His remarks touched on opaque fiscal expenditures in the downstream petroleum sector, the legal mechanics governing multiparty coalition tickets under the 2022 Electoral Act, voter demographics among Nigerian youth, and alleged clandestine electoral manoeuvres by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
DUBAWA fact-checked some of Galadima’s claims during the interview.
Claim 1: The current administration spent N5.1 trillion in 2023 and N7.1 trillion in 2024 on fuel subsidy, called “energy security expenses.”
Quote: “Do you know that, as of now, even Bola Tinubu himself pays a subsidy, which is called energy security expenses, and in 2023 he paid N5.1 trillion. In 2024, he paid N7.1 trillion. This is why you should call him to explain what energy security expenses mean. It is a subsidy called by another name.”
Verdict: TRUE.
Audited financial statements from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) confirmed that the national oil firm recorded fuel under-recoveries under the explicit accounting line item “Energy Security Expense.”
In its consolidated financial reports, NNPCL recorded N4.84 trillion in 2023 and N7.13 trillion in 2024 under this category. While the official 2023 figure was approximately N4.84 trillion, slightly below Galadima’s quoted N5.1 trillion, his N7.1 trillion figure for 2024 matched the audited accounts.
We also found reports that industry analysts and civil society organisations criticised the expenditure as a continuation of petrol subsidies despite the administration’s May 2023 public declaration that “subsidy is gone.”
Claim 2: Before the Iran-American military escalation, fuel was retailing in Nigeria at N820 per litre.
Quote: “Don’t you know that before the Iran-American war petrol was selling for N820, so if he brings it from N1,650 to half, for example, what you are suggesting he didn’t even say, so he’s just making you look like a fool because you can’t remember history…”
Verdict: TRUE.
Across major urban centres in Nigeria, Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) dispensed at major NNPCL outlets and major marketers hovered between N770 and N820 per litre in early 2026.
Following intensified military conflict involving Iran, the United States, and regional shipping corridors on Feb. 28, 2026, global crude oil benchmarks spiked above $100 per barrel. The surge in landed import costs drove pump prices up to between N1,200 and N1,650 per litre across different states.
Claim 3: Nigerian electoral law and constitutional provisions prevent opposition parties from fielding a single joint candidate across different party lines on the ballot without a formal merger.
Quote: “Technically, legally, other opposition parties cannot produce one single candidate on the ballot.”
Verdict: TRUE.
The Electoral Act 2026 established a framework for candidate nomination, sponsorship, and ballot listing, and restricts multi-party cross-endorsement or shared candidacy unless a formal statutory merger occurs.
Under Section 77(4)-(6), political parties must compile and submit a verified digital register of their members to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), including National Identification Numbers (NIN) and photographs. Parties must submit the list at least 21 days before any scheduled congress or primary. Only individuals on the list can vote or be voted for during the primaries, and parties cannot adopt alternative membership lists.
Section 84 also limits candidates’ selection to direct primaries or internal consensus among screening aspirants within the same party. Since a candidate cannot hold valid membership in two political parties at the same time, this prevents a party’s candidate from legally emerging as the winner of another party’s internal candidate selection process.
The only exception is when the parties merge, as provided in Section 81. Any informal alliance agreed before the election does not reflect on the ballot.
Claim 4: Bola Tinubu held a private meeting with the INEC chairman alongside prominent Nigerians in France.
Quote: “He may announce himself having met the INEC chairman, some prominent Nigerians in France, and we don’t know what they are doing…”
Verdict: INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE.
No credible photographic, documentary, or official evidence supports the allegation that Tinubu met Joash Amupitan, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in France. Meanwhile, DUBAWA found reports indicating that Amupitan was in Abuja, presiding over the Commission’s National Situation Room operations as of Sept. 20, 2026.
While Tinubu has made official and private trips to Paris, no evidence confirms allegations of offshore political coordination. Galadima also provided no dates, locations, or eyewitness substantiation.
Claim 5: Nigerians aged 18 to 35 make up 65% of the total registered voter population.
Quote: “Do you know the people we are recruiting? We are mobilising the young boys between 18 and 35… targeting them as a voting bloc because they form 65% of the population of Nigerian voters.”
Verdict: FALSE.
According to INEC’s certified National Register of Voters for the 2023 general elections, individuals aged 18 to 34 accounted for 37,060,399 out of 93,469,008 registered voters. The youth demographic represented approximately 39.65% of the total voting roll. The middle-aged demographic (ages 35 to 49), at 33,413,591, has the second-highest number at 35.75%. If isolated, the 18-35 age demographic pales in comparison to the 65% youth cohort Galadima claimed. If he meant to include the middle-age demographic, his claim falls short by 10%.
For clarity, we examined his claim using figures for the 2027 election cycle. Despite the change in statistics and demographics, Galadima’s claim still fell short by a mile. Registered voters aged 18 to 34 dropped to 29,777,576 (28.79%), while the middle-aged voters increased to 43,265,946 (41.83%). This time, his claim missed by 5% if he intended to include the middle-aged voters.