Stop The Pretence: Governors Should Face Governance, Leave Politics To Leaders — Oluwafemi
A development expert and President of the Africa Development Studies Centre (ADSC), Sir Victor Oluwafemi, has urged Nigerian governors to focus strictly on governance and stop encroaching into political leadership roles, insisting that President Bola Tinubu has finally drawn a necessary line to stabilise Nigeria’s democracy.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Oluwafemi said Tinubu’s intervention in the Rivers State political crisis was timely, decisive and long overdue, describing it as a clear attempt to separate executive authority from political leadership — a distinction he said Nigeria has repeatedly failed to respect.
According to him, Nigeria’s recurring political instability is largely the result of the persistent refusal to acknowledge that being elected governor does not automatically confer political leadership.
“The Rivers State situation has merely exposed a problem that exists across the federation,” he said. “President Bola Tinubu’s intervention is not only necessary, it deserves national commendation.”
Oluwafemi noted that the President’s reported declaration — affirming Nyesom Wike as the political leader of Rivers State while directing that any impeachment plot against Governor Siminalayi Fubara must stop — achieved two critical objectives: recognising political reality and protecting constitutional order.
“This clarity has been absent in Nigeria for too long,” he said.
The development expert explained that a governor’s role is fundamentally executive, centred on governance, policy implementation and service delivery, while political leadership is built through party structures, influence, coalition management and long-term control of political machinery.
He cited Borno State as an example, noting that while Governor Babagana Zulum governs the state, major political decisions remain anchored by Vice President Kashim Shettima. Similarly, in Lagos State, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu runs the executive arm, while political direction and discipline are shaped by President Tinubu’s enduring leadership.
Oluwafemi also referenced Katsina State during the era of the late Muhammadu Buhari, where governors administered the state but political direction flowed from Buhari, ensuring stability because political reality was acknowledged rather than denied.
“These examples reveal an uncomfortable but necessary truth,” he said. “In some states, the governor may be the dominant political actor. In others, the governor is a product of an existing political structure built and sustained by someone else.”
He warned that when governors attempt to merge executive authority with political leadership, it often results in confrontation, legislative sabotage, betrayal and governance paralysis.
“Office does not erase political lineage,” Oluwafemi stressed. “Executive power does not cancel political reality.”
He urged political parties to stop misleading the public by portraying governors as automatic political leaders in all circumstances, arguing that such confusion has fuelled unnecessary political crises across the country.
Commending Tinubu’s handling of the Rivers situation, Oluwafemi said the President demonstrated statesmanship by reaffirming political truth while firmly rejecting the weaponisation of impeachment.
“This is leadership. This is political maturity,” he said. “Nigeria must stop confusing titles with authority and power with legitimacy. Governors must govern. Political leaders must lead politically. Democracy only stabilises when everyone respects their lane.”
The statement was issued by Sir Victor Walsh Oluwafemi, KJW, international development expert, reputation architecture builder and President of the Africa Development Studies Centre.
