For a man who once posed as the champion of Nigerian workers and struggling citizens, Senator Adams Oshiomhole has earned himself a glittering award in sycophancy.
Development Diaries reports that the senator representing the people of Edo North recently visited President Bola Tinubu to congratulate him because President Donald Trump said nice things about the first lady
Recall that the U.S. president had last week Thursday described Nigeria’s first lady, Oluremi Tinubu, as a ‘very respected woman’ during the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C.
And, in his reaction, Senator Oshiomhole declared that Trump’s compliments are proof of ‘inclusive governance’ in Nigeria.
If this is the new metric, then maybe we should start rating governance with Instagram comments and TikTok likes.
Nigerians are battling food inflation, electricity tariffs, insecurity, unemployment, school fees, and a cost-of-living crisis that is squeezing pockets like garri soaked without sugar.
Yet, somehow, we are expected to find national meaning in a generic line from the U.S. president at a prayer breakfast?
We should not pretend that we do not know how this country works. Give it time, and someone in the ruling party will turn Trump’s praise into campaign content, such as ‘Even America knows we are doing well’.
They may soon add it to billboards next to the president’s smile, as if ordinary citizens can use compliments to pay for transport from Kubwa to Sharp Corner, near Nyanya.
What makes Oshiomhole’s reaction even more shocking is his own history as a man who once stormed the streets with workers, shouting ‘solidarity forever’! while calling out the powerful.
Today, that same voice is being used to clap for compliments from abroad. Indeed, if irony were currency, Nigerians might finally afford jollof rice again.
And this is where the masses must wake up, because while politicians are busy applauding themselves over foreign niceties, nobody is clapping for the Nigerians who skip meals to survive, or the farmers who cannot access their farms, or the parents struggling to keep their children in school.
Trump’s remarks have zero impact on the price of garri, will not fix security, will not restore purchasing power, will not reduce transport costs, will not improve electricity, and will not make cooking gas any cheaper.
So instead of getting carried away by elite excitement over a foreign compliment, citizens should redirect their attention to their elected representatives, who actually owe them results.
These senators and members of the House of Representatives were elected to represent your struggles, not to act as hype men for the president.
If your representative is celebrating praise from Washington while your community water project is dry, you should be democratically angry.
Oshiomhole’s Villa visit is a reminder of why citizens cannot outsource governance to political elites who treat validation from abroad like a national achievement.
