Barau Faults Osinbajo Over Assessment of Nigeria’s Economy, Democracy

According to a report by Daily Post Nigeria on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, has disagreed with former Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo over his assessment of Nigeria’s economic situation and the state of democracy, insisting that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is working to address the country’s longstanding challenges.

Barau acknowledged that the government still has areas requiring improvement but maintained that the Tinubu administration was taking steps to tackle existing economic and governance problems.

He, however, stressed the need for the government to communicate its policies, achievements and ongoing reforms more effectively to Nigerians to ensure that citizens understand the efforts being made to improve their living conditions.

The Deputy Senate President made the remarks in Yola, Adamawa State, while delivering a lecture titled “Democracy and Development: Rethinking the Leadership Question.”

The event was organised to commemorate the 59th birthday of Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Fintiri.

During the lecture, Barau responded to Osinbajo’s concerns about the performance of democracy and the economic conditions across African countries, including Nigeria.

The former Vice-President had relied on findings from Afrobarometer surveys to highlight the growing dissatisfaction among citizens with democratic governance and economic performance on the continent.

According to the figures cited by Osinbajo, 64 per cent of Africans prefer democracy as a system of government, but only 38 per cent expressed satisfaction with the way democracy operates in their countries.

The survey findings also indicated that 59 per cent of respondents considered their countries’ economic conditions to be bad, while 51 per cent believed their economies had deteriorated.

Osinbajo’s assessment highlighted the gap between Africans’ preference for democratic governance and their experiences under elected governments, alongside widespread concerns about economic hardship.

However, Barau maintained that the challenges facing Nigeria should be considered alongside the efforts being made by the current administration to address them.

He also emphasised the importance of effective communication in governance, suggesting that the government needed to do more to explain its policies and progress to the public.

The exchange reflects differing perspectives among prominent Nigerian political figures on the country’s economic situation, democratic performance and the effectiveness of ongoing government reforms.

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