Duke: Tinubu is my friend but I don’t like the direction he is taking

Former Cross River State governor and 2027 presidential candidate of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke, has said his personal friendship with President Bola Tinubu remains intact despite his disagreement with the direction of the current administration.

Duke said his political differences with Tinubu should not be construed as a personal dispute, stressing that their relationship predates the president’s current position in government.

Speaking on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs program on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, the former governor said he has known Tinubu since 1998 and continues to consider him a friend despite his criticism of the administration’s policies.
“President Tinubu has been my friend since 1998, but I don’t like the direction he is taking. I think we will not achieve much by going in this direction. But when it comes to personalities, we remain friends.”
Duke’s comments came in reaction to the state of the Nigerian economy and the opposition’s efforts to build a common platform capable of challenging the APC.
The PRP presidential candidate has criticized the economic hardships Nigerians face, arguing that government policies should be assessed based on their impact on citizens’ well-being rather than official claims of economic progress.
He questioned the effectiveness of measures introduced by the Tinubu administration to cushion the effects of the removal of fuel subsidies, exchange rate reforms and other economic changes.

Faced with several government interventions, including conditional cash transfers, small business grants, student loans, minimum wage adjustments, and the President’s Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, Duke challenged the interviewer to identify any of the policies that had personally improved his situation.
“None of these policies, I would say, have brought me any benefit,” he said, adding that temporary financial assistance is not a sustainable substitute for economic productivity.
He argued that government should focus on creating an environment where Nigerians can earn sustainable incomes, rather than relying on grants and periodic stipends.
“I told you that the mission of a government should be the productivity of its people,” Duke said.

The former governor also criticized what he described as an unsustainable economic environment, citing high interest rates, energy costs and challenges facing businesses that rely on bank financing.
He argued that Nigeria’s abundant natural and human resources should be harnessed to improve productivity and reduce the country’s dependence on imports.

Duke said his disagreement with Tinubu was therefore rooted in concerns about governance and the country’s economic direction, rather than personal animosity.
His position, he explained, was that political leaders should be judged on their ability to improve the lives of Nigerians, regardless of their personal relationships or political affiliations.