Yiaga Africa's Itodo praises Tinubu's Democracy Day speech rhetoric but stresses Nigerians' distrust in democratic process
Samson Itodo, Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, commended President Tinubu's 2026 Democracy Day speech for hitting 'the right tone' and saying 'all the right things' during a Channels Television interview on Friday. Itodo specifically praised the historical narrative of democracy's struggle and the national honours awarded to democracy advocates. However, he immediately shifted to a critical observation: despite Nigerians believing in democracy, data shows they do not trust the current democratic process. Itodo linked this trust deficit directly to voter apathy, arguing low election turnout stems from citizens' belief that INEC is either 'captured by operations' or lacks necessary resources to function credibly. He further questioned public trust in party primary processes lacking transparency and accountability, directly challenging whether leadership recognizes this gap between rhetoric and lived experience. Itodo emphasized Tinubu's own quote—'Democracy only works when citizens trust the process'—and posed the essential follow-up: will Nigerians today trust the process, to which he answered 'no' based on empirical evidence of institutional shortcomings.