Olawunmi Ajibike
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Friday assured Nigerians that his administration remains committed to far-reaching reforms and long-term national development.
Tinubu gave the assurance at the 2026 Obafemi Awolowo Memorial Lecture held at Efunyela Hall, Ikenne, Ogun State.
Represented by the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Salako, the President said the government’s agenda reflects the visionary leadership style of late nationalist Obafemi Awolowo.
According to him, Nigeria currently has a leader in Awolowo’s mould guiding the nation through a critical period of reforms.
The lecture, themed “Politics as Future-Making: Awolowo and Leadership as Theory of Action,” examined the late statesman’s ideas on governance and leadership.
Tinubu described Awolowo as a rare statesman whose courage, intellectual depth and welfare-driven policies transformed the old Western Region.
He noted that Awolowo’s tenure as Premier between 1954 and 1959 established the region as a development model anchored on education, healthcare and infrastructure.
“Pa Awolowo was a profoundly wise leader whose ideas and actions placed him among the great thinkers and reformers in history.
“His introduction of free universal primary education in 1955 remains one of the most consequential policy decisions in Nigeria’s history.
“The policy laid the foundation for the strong human capital base that continues to drive development in the South-West,” he said.
Tinubu also highlighted Awolowo’s infrastructural achievements, noting that more than 2,000 kilometres of roads were constructed across the Western Region during his administration, far exceeding the network inherited from the colonial government.
The President added that the present administration’s economic and structural reforms have begun to stabilise the economy and improve key indicators.
According to him, Nigeria recorded a Gross Domestic Product growth rate of 4.23 per cent in the second quarter of 2025, alongside improved foreign reserves and a significant reduction in the debt-service-to-revenue ratio.
He urged citizens to support the government’s reform agenda to sustain economic recovery and growth.
Earlier, former Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku described Awolowo as one of the three founding fathers of modern Nigeria, noting that his legacy continues to shape national political discourse.
Reflecting on the current political climate, Anyaoku cautioned against excessive focus on the 2027 general elections at the expense of governance.
Delivering the lecture, Wale Adebanwi said Awolowo approached politics as a long-term project of shaping society through visionary policies and scientific governance.
Adebanwi, a Guggenheim Fellow and Presidential Penn Compact Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, said Awolowo’s intellectual works provide a pragmatic blueprint for building a prosperous and egalitarian federation anchored on federalism, social justice and human capital development.
In her welcome address, the Executive Director of the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation, Olatokunbo Awolowo-Dosunmu, said the annual lecture promotes reflection on leadership and Awolowo’s enduring values.
She also announced the establishment of the Obafemi Awolowo Future Leaders Fellowship, an initiative aimed at nurturing ethical and visionary young leaders across Africa and the diaspora.
Awolowo-Dosunmu added that the foundation is also considering sector-based awards to recognise individuals demonstrating excellence and integrity in their respective fields.