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Media engagement to shape narratives around governance, economic policies, and a candidate’s credibility has formed a core component of public figures’ recent media appearances.
During a recent interview on Channels TV’s Sunday Politics programme, Reno Omokri, Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Mexico, made several claims concerning Bola Tinubu’s macroeconomic performance since he became president.
DUBAWA identified some key claims he made during the interview and verified their accuracy.
Claim 1: Federal allocations to states have increased fivefold under Tinubu
Quote: “In this country, we’ve seen that the federal allocation to states has increased by a multiple of five…”
Verdict: FALSE. According to official statistics from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), total allocations disbursed to state governments rose from N3.58 trillion in 2023 to N5.81 trillion in 2024, a 62% year-on-year increase.
The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) also revealed that state allocation had increased by 130% annually, averaging N9.8 trillion annually under the current administration. The data contradicted Omokri’s 500% claim by a large margin.
Claim 2: Over 1 million students are currently receiving student loans from NELFUND
Quote: “Before this administration came to be, you had a severe challenge in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions because a lot of people could not go to school. Right now, you have over 1 million students collecting student loans from NELFUND.”
Verdict: TRUE. Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND’s managing director, revealed in interviews that 1,819,011 Nigerian students have benefited from the initiative since it began in May 2024.
So far, the agency has disbursed N355,872,779,439.25 to 319 Nigerian public tertiary institutions. As of Sept. 3, 2026, about 450,000 students applied from the north-west, followed by the north-east (378,103). The south-west came third with 360,000, while the north-central produced 324,908 students. The south-south (198,000) and south-east (108,000) round out the list.
Claim 3: Nigeria shifted from being the number one importer of petroleum products to the number one exporter of petroleum products in West Africa.
Quote: “We’ve seen that we have moved from the number one importer of petroleum products to the number one exporter of petroleum products in West Africa.”
Verdict: INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE. Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that Nigeria’s petrol import bills fell from N15.42 trillion in 2024 to N8.96 trillion in 2025.
Total petrol consumed in the calendar year was 18.97 billion litres, according to data from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA). About 11.85 billion litres (62.47%) of the volume was imported, indicating that Nigeria still remains a net importer of refined petroleum products. Although the Dangote Refinery helped increase exports of refined petroleum products, there is insufficient evidence that Nigeria has become the largest exporter.
Claim 4: The World Bank reported in January 2026 that Nigeria is the sixth largest contributor to global GDP growth.
Quote: “That same World Bank in January this year said Nigeria is the sixth largest contributor to global GDP growth. Do you want to Google that?”
Verdict: MISLEADING. We found no World Bank data placing Nigeria as the sixth-largest contributor to global GDP growth.
However, further findings showed that International Monetary Fund data projected Nigeria’s economy to contribute 1.5% to global real GDP growth. The data placed Nigeria sixth, behind Turkey (2.2%), Indonesia (3.8%), the United States (9.9%), India (17%), and China (26.6%). Other top ten countries behind Nigeria include Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Germany. Though the IMF is a Bretton Woods institution like the World Bank, the findings contradicted Omokri’s claim.
Notably, the data reflects only growth-rate forecasts, not overall economic size. For instance, South Africa’s economy, which did not make the top ten, is projected to reach $446.64 billion in 2026, compared to Nigeria, which is expected to reach $334.34 billion in dollar terms. Also, the data is a projection, which means it is not yet a reality.
Claim 5: Headline inflation was at 30% (or 28.59%) when President Tinubu took office and is now down by half.
Quote: “Well, the metrics that we should use in Nigeria are these inflation rates… when this president took office May 29, 2023, it was almost 30 per cent. I believe it was about 28.59%, if my memory serves me correctly. Today, it’s half that…“
Verdict: FALSE. According to official data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the headline inflation stood at 22.41% year-on-year when Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, rather than the 28.59% or 30% figure cited in the interview.
Food inflation also stood at 24.82% year-on-year. Following the removal of the petrol subsidy and the floating of the Naira in mid-2023, inflation peaked to a 28-year high of over 34.2% in mid-2024. As of August 2026, Nigeria’s headline inflation rate had fallen slightly to 15.39%, down from 15.43% in July 2026, while food inflation also dropped to 19.57% in August 2026, from 20.31% in July 2026.
Claim 6: Lagos State’s GDP grew from under $100 billion to $259 billion (PPP) within six years, making it Africa’s second-largest city economy.
Quote: “Lagos has been able to multiply its GDP in just six years. They’ve gone from a GDP of less than a hundred billion dollars; Right now, Lagos has a GDP of $259 billion in Purchasing Power Parity.”
Verdict: PARTLY TRUE. Official statements released at the Lagos Economic Development Update (LEDU) in 2025 valued Lagos State’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at $259 billion on a Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis.
This figure positioned the state as Africa’s second-largest urban economy behind Cairo. Meanwhile, Lagos was already raking in more than $100 billion even before the six-year range Omokri cited. As of August 2015, Lagos GDP was estimated at $136.6 billion.
Claim 7: The number of millionaires in Lagos grew from under 2,000 to 3,600 over the past six years.
Quote: “Six years ago, Lagos had less than 2,000 dollar millionaires. As I speak to you right now, Lagos has 3,600 millionaires.”
Verdict: FALSE. According to annual reports by Henley & Partners (in partnership with New World Wealth), the number of High-Net-Worth Individuals (HNWIs) with liquid investable wealth of $1 million or more living in Lagos fell from approximately 5,000 in 2020 to 3,800 by 2026.
The number of Lagos residents worth $100 million is currently 13, while only two dollar billionaires live in the city.
Rather than growing, the number of USD millionaires in Lagos and Nigeria as a whole fell by 32% over the decade, mainly because of steep Naira devaluations and domestic economic headwinds.
Claim 8: 1.2 million tourists visit Lagos every December for Detty December.
Quote: “Every year 1.2 million tourists go to Lagos; that is in December. That is the single biggest tourist event in Africa.”
Verdict: INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE. A report by MO Africa Company Limited, an advisory firm, disclosed that Lagos welcomed an estimated average of 1.2 million visitors in December 2024. This is likely the source of Omokri’s claim. However, 60% of the visitors were from other parts of Nigeria, not international tourists.
In December 2024 alone, the tourism and entertainment sector generated N111.5 billion, with hotel revenue reaching N54 billion from 15,000 bookings. In 2023, the Detty December period also injected over N200 billion into Nigeria’s economy. Between Nov. 19 and Dec. 26, 2024, Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos State welcomed about 550,000 inbound passengers, of whom 90% were Nigerians living abroad.
In 2025, over 3.6 million were visitors, and total consumer spend was around N396.56 billion, with 55% from diaspora visitors. However, the report provides no evidence that the claimed visitors were all tourists. Also, describing the December festive period as the single biggest tourist event in Africa is ambiguous. DUBAWA found no specific metrics for measuring tourist events in Africa, let alone the biggest.
Claim 9: Tinubu was the first Nigerian President to travel to Rome to attend a Pope’s investiture/inauguration.
Quote: “For the first time in the history of this nation, a President went to Rome to attend the investiture and inauguration of a Pope. We’ve had Christian presidents who never did that.”
Verdict: TRUE. In May 2025, Tinubu personally led the official Nigerian delegation to St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City for the inauguration mass of Pope Leo XIV.
Findings revealed that previous Nigerian administrations sent official delegations to papal inaugurations; no sitting Nigerian president had personally attended an inaugural ceremony in Rome before Tinubu.
Goodluck Jonathan only approved a high-level delegation led by David Mark, the then-Senate President, for the installation of Pope Francis in March 2013. However, Jonathan travelled to the Vatican a year later for a private meeting with Pope Francis to discuss interfaith dialogue and security.
Olusegun Obasanjo also did not attend Pope Benedict XVI’s inaugural Mass. Nigeria was represented by an official diplomatic delegation rather than the president personally.