President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that the will of Almighty Allah must prevail in determining who leads Nigeria after the 2027 presidential election, saying his political future ultimately rests in God’s hands.

Tinubu made the declaration in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, shortly after performing the lesser Hajj, known as Umrah, at the Grand Mosque, Masjid al-Haram, on Friday.

The President spoke while responding to journalists who asked about the significance of his return to the holy city after visiting Makkah ahead of the 2023 presidential election, which he won.

Tinubu described the visit as significant, expressing confidence in divine guidance and acknowledging that the outcome of the forthcoming political contest was beyond human control.

“I believe the love of the people, the commitment to the job, and the physical commitment to it. I believe that Allah’s wish in His court must prevail. And there’s no other God but Allah,” he said.

He added that Allah alone determines what a person becomes in life, stressing the importance of faith and prayer as Nigeria approaches another electoral cycle.

The President also described the pilgrimage as a spiritual experience for him and the country, saying he felt fulfilled after completing the religious rites.

“It’s a spiritual thing for me and the country, Nigeria. I’m grateful to Allah for this opportunity,” he said.

READ ALSO:

• Rhodes-Vivour Tackles Lagos Government Over Threat to Seal Residents’ Boreholes
• EPL: Chelsea Hand Manchester United 2-0 Defeat to Deepen Carrick’s Crisis
• Sowore’s Ekiti Clash: How Argument Over Hunger, Tinubu’s Govt Triggered Fight — Source

Tinubu said he and members of his delegation had prayed for Nigeria, particularly for peace, unity, harmony and happiness among citizens.

“We just prayed for our nation. We prayed for everyone to live in harmony, happiness, and faith in God Almighty,” he added.

The President’s comments come as political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general election, in which he is seeking another presidential mandate under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Tinubu formally launched his re-election campaign at a rally in Kaduna on October 24, urging supporters to give him another term in office.

His major challengers include former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who is associated with the African Democratic Congress, and Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, among other political contenders.

The President’s Makkah visit also provided an opportunity for members of his delegation to seek divine intervention for Nigeria, particularly over insecurity, national unity and the conduct of the forthcoming elections.

Chairman of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, who accompanied Tinubu, said the delegation had prayed for lasting peace, national unity and a successful electoral process.

Rabiu described the visit as an opportunity to seek God’s intervention at a critical period in the country’s political development.

He said the delegation would continue praying for peaceful, free and fair elections, expressing hope that Nigeria would overcome its challenges.

Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State also emphasised the need for lasting peace and stability, saying security remained essential to the country’s future and the success of the electoral process.

Zulum said Nigerians needed to work towards national unity and peaceful coexistence, adding that the delegation had prayed for an end to insecurity.

Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State described the pilgrimage as part of a collective effort to seek divine guidance for the country and its electoral process.

He said the delegation had prayed for God to grant Nigerians the leadership and future that would serve their interests.

Governor Ahmad Aliyu of Sokoto State also said the visit provided an opportunity for the country’s leaders to pray for peace, stability and progress.

Meanwhile, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Special Duties, Tunde Rahman, said the President had maintained a longstanding practice of undertaking spiritual visits to seek divine guidance.

Rahman said he had accompanied Tinubu on such visits since around 2016, adding that the President regularly used the opportunity to pray for himself and the country.

He described the current pilgrimage as particularly important because Nigeria was approaching another general election.

In a separate statement, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu performed the Umrah in the early hours of Friday and offered prayers of gratitude to Allah for Nigeria and its people.

According to the statement, the President prayed for sustainable peace, national unity, harmony and stability, while asking God to guide the country’s leaders and grant Nigeria lasting relief from insecurity and other challenges.

Tinubu also reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to building a peaceful and prosperous country where Nigerians, irrespective of their religious or social backgrounds, could live in safety and dignity.

The President departed Abuja for Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 29, and is expected to return to Nigeria next week after completing the spiritual exercise.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his administration’s borrowing policy, describing the president’s position that borrowing is not leprosy as “absolute nonsense”.

Obasanjo warned that excessive borrowing could mortgage the future of generations of Nigerians, arguing that the consequences of accumulated national debt extend far beyond the present generation.

The former president made the remarks on Friday, October 30, 2026, while speaking at the Ajibosin Platform, a public forum held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, with the theme, “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Solve Grassroots Problems and Accelerate National Development.”

His comments were a direct response to Tinubu’s defence of government borrowing in April, when the president maintained that taking loans was not necessarily wrong if the government could generate sufficient revenue to repay them.

“If we have to borrow, we borrow. Borrowing is not leprosy; we just have to work hard to be able to pay for it,” Tinubu had said during a meeting with Plateau State leaders at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Rejecting the president’s comparison, Obasanjo said debt was more destructive than leprosy because its effects could burden entire generations.

“And for anybody to say debt is no leprosy is absolute nonsense. Debt is worse than leprosy. Because leprosy destroys only one person. Debt destroys generations,” the former president declared.

READ ALSO:

• US Midterm Elections: Democrats Outpace Republicans as Early Voting Hits Record 48 Million
• NCC Deploys Device Checker App to Tackle Fake, Cloned Phones in Nigeria
• Romance Scam: FBI Declares Nigerian Woman Wanted, Offers ₦6.7m Reward

Obasanjo also questioned Nigeria’s economic performance over the past 47 years, particularly the dramatic depreciation of the naira against the United States dollar.

Recalling when he established his farm nearly five decades ago, the former president said the naira exchanged at approximately N1 to $1.85, contrasting the historical rate with what he described as the current exchange rate of about N1,500 to the dollar.

“When I started my farm, 47 years ago, naira to the dollar was one naira to $1.85. Forty-seven years ago. What has Nigeria done in 47 years that we now have 1,500 naira to the dollar? What have we done?” he asked.

He also questioned the capacity of Nigeria’s political leadership to formulate policies that would improve the living conditions of ordinary citizens.

“What do our leaders know? And what do they not know? And from what they know, what can they do for us?” Obasanjo queried.

The former president further criticised Nigeria’s dependence on foreign financial institutions, particularly the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), arguing that their economic prescriptions were not necessarily designed to address the country’s peculiar challenges.

According to him, Nigeria should not unquestioningly adopt economic policies recommended by international institutions without considering local realities.

“World Bank and IMF were not designed for us. They were not built by us. They were built before we became independent. And that’s the people who would determine what we do,” he said.

READ ALSO:

• ₦50,000 Monthly Relief: FG Begins Cash Payments to Vulnerable Nigerians
• Zamfara Kidnap: Three Imams Regain Freedom After Weeks in Captivity, Three Others Still Held
• Atiku’s Son Dumps Father’s Political Camp, Launches Tinubu Re-Election Campaign

Obasanjo also recalled Nigeria’s past agricultural policies, arguing that the country had been discouraged from supporting its farmers through subsidies even as developed economies continued to provide substantial assistance to their agricultural sectors.

He cautioned Nigerian policymakers against relying excessively on recommendations from foreign-trained economists without examining whether such policies would work under the country’s economic conditions.

The former president’s criticism comes amid renewed debate over Nigeria’s rising public debt and the Tinubu administration’s latest borrowing plans.

On October 27, Tinubu asked the National Assembly to approve a supplementary external borrowing plan totalling approximately $20.52 billion and €1.045 billion for the 2026–2027 period.

The request, conveyed in a letter read by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, is intended to finance projects and programmes across several sectors, including infrastructure, power, transportation, healthcare, education, agriculture, security and job creation.

The proposed borrowing has renewed concerns about the country’s ability to manage its debt obligations and generate sufficient revenue to finance public expenditure.

According to figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s public debt stood at N166.79 trillion as of June 2026, compared with N87.38 trillion in June 2023. Exchange-rate movements also contributed to the increase in the naira value of the country’s debt.

Tinubu’s administration has consistently defended borrowing as necessary to bridge infrastructure gaps, finance development projects and support its ambition of building a $1 trillion economy by 2030.

The president has argued that the more important consideration is how borrowed funds are invested, the economic value they generate and the government’s capacity to repay its obligations.

However, Obasanjo’s latest intervention has added to the growing public debate over the country’s borrowing strategy, debt sustainability and the long-term economic consequences for future generations.