By Jane Okafor, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday declared that no amount of pressure or intimidation would derail his mission, insisting his administration’s reforms are already delivering results for Nigerians.
Speaking at the State House in Abuja during a meeting with the Renewed Hope Ambassadors—a political mobilisation network tasked with taking his message to the grassroots—Tinubu pushed back at critics and political opponents, asserting his legitimacy as successor to former President Muhammadu Buhari.
“They want to scare me off? It’s a lie. I’ve been through this path before, and if I have to come back over and over and over again, I’ll do the same thing,” he said.
“There is no better place than your own country, and no one can build it except you.
“During the primaries that got me here, it was tough. During the election, it was tough. Now that I’m here, all I can promise is that I won’t give up.”
Addressing the ambassadors drawn from across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones, Tinubu reinforced his resolve to stay the course.
“Whatever you say I do, but one thing that you need from me is a promise that I won’t run away from this fight. With you, the deal is done,” he stated.
His remarks come amid sustained criticism from opposition figures and sections of civil society over the pace and impact of his reforms, with some calling for his resignation due to economic hardship and insecurity.
On April 14, former Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola, now National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress, described the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda as a “classic scam” and urged Tinubu to step down.
Tinubu, however, framed ongoing challenges as inherited realities requiring correction, not retreat.
“I didn’t have to look back, because the truth is, I took over from myself. The late Buhari is me. He was a partner.
“If I took over from him, is that not from myself? So if something is wrong, fine, live with it, correct it, move on,” he said.
He also called for respect for democratic institutions and the rule of law.
“We cannot submit to disobedience of a lawful order of a court. We must embrace the judiciary, whether it favours us or not.
“We submit to this principle of democracy, separation of powers and the understanding of its dynamics, and the nationhood that Nigeria is. We must build one country.”
Casting the Renewed Hope agenda as a generational mission, Tinubu added: “This is an opportunity of a lifetime, to break the shackles of poverty and ignorance, to put freedom in the hearts of our people, to ensure democracy survives. Not the noise-making, not the rascality of a street convention.”
The Renewed Hope Ambassadors, inaugurated in February, are designed to mobilise support for the administration’s policies and the APC ahead of the 2027 elections.
Thursday’s meeting served as a follow-up engagement with their leadership and zonal coordinators. “I’m inspired, I’m ready. I’m grateful to all of you,” Tinubu said.
