2027: Outrage as First Lady donates seven luxury SUVs to APC youth leaders for election mobilization

APC youth leader Dayo Israel displayed seven new 2026 Toyota Prado SUVs.

The vehicles sparked criticism amid economic hardship and questions about spending priorities.

The cost and funding source for the SUVs have not been publicly disclosed.

The donation of seven luxury Toyota Prado SUVs to selected youth leaders of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has sparked public outrage, with critics questioning the timing of the gesture amid economic hardship and rising living costs.

The controversy began on Sunday, October 25, after Dayo Israel, the APC National Youth Leader, shared a video showing seven brand-new 2026 Toyota Land Cruiser Prado SUVs lined up for presentation to selected party youth leaders.

In the now-deleted post on X, Israel said the vehicles were intended to support the beneficiaries’ election mobilisation activities ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“Today, I presented brand new 2026 Prado to my committed selected youth leaders to aid their election mobilisation activities,” he wrote, while thanking First Lady Oluremi Tinubu for what he described as her continued support for the party’s youth structure.

“The party is supreme and that supremacy will show in our actions in this election period — we will deliver polling unit by polling unit,” he added.

The post drew criticism from Nigerians, many of whom questioned the decision to provide expensive SUVs for political mobilisation while households continue to grapple with the cost of food, transport and other basic needs.

Some social media users compared the reported expenditure with challenges in the healthcare sector, including shortages of medical equipment and concerns about the welfare of health workers. Others questioned the source of the money used to acquire the vehicles.

First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu. The controversy intensified after Mrs Tinubu confirmed that she had donated vehicles to the APC National Youth Wing to support grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2027 elections.

She made the disclosure on Sunday during a meeting with regional APC youth leaders led by Israel at the State House in Abuja.

According to reports by PREMIUM TIMES, the First Lady also said she would provide campaign materials, footwear and other items to support the party’s youth leaders. She said the vehicles were intended to help them move around and strengthen their grassroots outreach.

Speaking after the meeting, Israel said the vehicles would help youth leaders reach rural communities, including areas with difficult terrain in the South-east and South-west.

He said their mobilisation efforts would focus on communicating the administration’s achievements in healthcare, education and welfare, including the student loan programme and the establishment of primary healthcare centres.

Israel also said he planned to embark on a nationwide mobilisation tour to promote the administration’s programmes and seek support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.

However, the donation has drawn criticism from opposition figures who have called for transparency over the cost of the vehicles and how they were funded.

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar called on the Presidency to explain the source of the funding, arguing that Nigerians deserved to know whether the vehicles were purchased with private money, donations or public resources.

“If the vehicles were paid for privately, the source of the funds should be disclosed. If public resources were used, the government must identify who authorised the spending and under what legal authority,” Atiku said in a statement reported by BusinessDay.

The report also quoted Omoyele Sowore, presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, criticising the reported expenditure and comparing it with the financial needs of Nigerian workers. Professor of political economy Pat Utomi also questioned whether the money could have been used to support essential public services, including the provision of ambulances.

The exact cost of the seven vehicles has not been disclosed. BusinessDay reported that a new 2026 Toyota Prado could cost between ₦120 million and ₦160 million, depending on its specifications and the dealer. At the lower estimate, seven vehicles would cost about ₦840 million.

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These figures are market estimates, not a confirmed invoice for the vehicles presented to the APC youth leaders.

Israel’s original post did not state who paid for the SUVs or disclose the purchase price. The post was deleted about three hours after it was published, but Israel had not publicly explained the deletion in the reports reviewed.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that it contacted the First Lady’s spokesperson, Busayo Kukoyi, and Israel for a response to the public criticism and questions about the cost and circumstances of the donation, but had received no response by the time its report was published.

The controversy has renewed debate over political spending priorities ahead of the 2027 elections, particularly as many Nigerians continue to face financial pressure.

While the First Lady and Israel said the vehicles would support grassroots mobilisation, the questions about their cost and funding remain unanswered in the available reports.