Tinubu’s Cult of Personality: A Dangerous Obsession with Self in a Crumbling Nation

By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com

In a country battling record inflation, historic levels of insecurity, a spiraling Naira and the unchecked exodus of skilled professionals, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has chosen an odd hill to die on: HIMSELF. In less than two years in office, Nigeria’s 16th president has renamed or established no fewer than seven public institutions and infrastructures in his own name; all while STILL SERVING in office.

This is not a case of national consensus on legacy. It is not a grateful nation immortalizing a statesman posthumously. This is a living president, naming the country after himself, in real time with utter disregard for the optics, implications or precedent. It is self-glorification masquerading as patriotism.

Let’s call it what it is: a cult of personality and Nigeria is in dangerous territory.

The Self-Naming Spree: Seven Monuments of Ego
Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja
The iconic International Conference Centre (ICC), initially commissioned in 1991 by General Ibrahim Babangida for ₦240 million, was recently renovated for ₦39 billion. It now bears Tinubu’s name, despite IBB, a former military head of state, never naming it after himself. That tells you something.

Tinubu International Airport, Minna
Renamed in 2023 while the president is still alive and active in office. A move that even General Sani Abacha, Nigeria’s most authoritarian ruler, never dared attempt.

Tinubu Polytechnic, Gwarinpa
A new federal polytechnic established under his administration and promptly christened after the president. Again; by the same man still holding the pen of power.

Tinubu National Assembly Library, Abuja
A legislative initiative backed by sycophantic lawmakers to immortalize the president in a space that is supposed to serve all members of the National Assembly across party lines.

Tinubu Immigration Technology Building, Abuja
A federal digital hub developed to enhance Nigeria’s immigration processing systems is now forever linked to the president’s name.

Tinubu Barracks, Asokoro
Military facilities are traditionally named after revered generals or national heroes, often posthumously. Yet here we are, with a barracks named after a living civilian president. Not even Olusegun Obasanjo or Muhammadu Buhari, both retired generals and former heads of state, ever received that honour in their lifetimes.

Tinubu Way, Abuja (Formerly Southern Parkway)
A major thoroughfare in the capital city renamed in 2024. The timing? Conveniently mid-term. Not post-presidency. Not after national consensus. But while the president is still signing off on the budgets and appointments that keep the legislative and executive arms compliant.

No Precedent in Nigerian Democracy
Historically, Nigeria has reserved such honours for deceased leaders, post-administration recognition or exceptional statesmen whose legacy transcended political partisanship. Even Obafemi Awolowo, widely regarded as Nigeria’s most visionary leader, did not self-name roads or institutions while in office.

President Goodluck Jonathan, despite establishing 12 new universities across Nigeria, never named one after himself. Former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, known for his humility and reformist spirit, died in office and still resisted the trap of self-worship. Even Buhari, under whose administration sycophancy flourished, did not rename major national assets after himself.

What Tinubu is doing is not legacy-building; it is a narcissistic branding campaign funded by taxpayers.

A Nation in Crisis, Led by Vanity
Nigeria is in crisis. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), over 133 million Nigerians live in multidimensional poverty. The inflation rate hovers near 33% as of May 2025, with food inflation exceeding 40%, according to CBN data. Insecurity still plagues northern and central regions, and over 2,000 Nigerian doctors have migrated to the UK since 2023 alone, per the UK General Medical Council.

Instead of leading with humility and focus, Tinubu is erecting marble monuments of his name in a collapsing economy.

“Leaders who are truly loved by their people don’t name things after themselves, the people do that when they are gone.”
— Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, Political Analyst, Centre for Democracy and Development

The Psychology of a Name
Naming is power. It immortalizes. It dominates memory and shapes perception. Tinubu’s spree of self-naming is not just about pride; it’s a calculated effort to brand Nigeria in his image, rewriting history while still holding the pen. This is not uncommon among autocrats and populists across history.

From Mobutu Sese Seko, who renamed the Democratic Republic of Congo to Zaire and named towns and airports after himself, to Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, who filled the nation with his family’s name, history is replete with examples of self-glorifying regimes who tried to mask repression and failure with symbolic excess.

“When a man becomes obsessed with his own name, he forgets the pain in the streets.”
— Chidi Odinkalu, Human Rights Lawyer

Where Is the National Assembly?
One must ask: where is the National Assembly? Where is the separation of powers? In theory, Nigeria practices constitutional democracy, but in practice, the legislature has become a chamber of praise-singers.

Senators who should be asking questions about the cost of renaming, the constitutional legality of branding public infrastructure with a living president’s name, and the message it sends to Nigerians are instead proposing more honorary bills.

This silence is not just shameful; it is complicity.

A Republic, Not a Kingdom
President Tinubu must be reminded: Nigeria is a republic, not a monarchy. Power resides in the people. Legacy is earned through service, not signage. If the president truly believes in posterity, let him allow future generations to decide how he is remembered and not through artificial plaques but by enduring progress.

This self-naming spree does not mask the hardship of Nigerians. It does not distract from the fuel queues, the collapsed power grid, the Naira in free-fall or the insecurity that haunts farmers and school-children alike.

Let Tinubu deliver real reform. Let him rebuild industries not just rename roads. Let him fix the education system not just rename the library. Let him be a leader for all and not just a brand for himself.

“The tragedy of African leadership is that too many men build statues of themselves in the sand while their people drown.”
— Prof. PLO Lumumba

Final Take: History Is Watching
History will remember this chapter and not kindly. President Tinubu’s self-immortalization project is an embarrassment to our democracy and a warning sign for our future. If unchecked, it could set a dangerous precedent for future leaders to elevate ego over service.

Let us be clear: this is not legacy. It is vanity. And vanity has no place in a nation gasping for breath.

The people must speak. Civil society must resist. The media must spotlight. Because if we let this slide, we’re not just enabling one man’s obsession; we are surrendering the dignity of the republic itself.

Written by George Omagbemi Sylvester
Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com