A prominent legal academic from Northern Nigeria, Barrister Saifuddeen Coomassie, on Tuesday urged the region to unite strongly behind President Bola Tinubu and support his bid for a second term in the 2027 general election.
Coomassie, who is a political and legal analyst at the Baze University Abuja,
warned that any opposition from the north against a full eight-year term for President Tinubu (a Southerner), risks deepening the region’s instability.
Speaking amid rising frustrations over insecurity, poverty, and an estimated 10 million out-of-school children—mostly from the north, Coomassie argued that President Tinubu needs time to deliver.
He said “Fighting the President, trying to get him out of the Villa in less than four years, is not going to do us any good”.
“Anybody coming in is not going to be able to fix this country in just four years,” he added.
Coomassie, a northerner in his 30s, redirected blames from President Tinubu, who took office less than three years ago, towards the region’s own leaders.
He cited figures like former Kaduna Governor State Nasir El-Rufai, ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal, among others, who held top posts for decades yet launched few initiatives in education, agriculture, or security to improve lives and the social wellbeing of people from the region.
“You don’t have to be president or governor to help your people,” Coomassie stressed.
“The only thing our northern leaders seem good at, is mobilizing our people anytime the government is not from the north.”
Coomassie noted El-Rufai’s shift—from praising President Tinubu as Nigeria’s best hope three years ago, to now decrying him —calling it “confusing”and self-serving.
The academic cited a long-standing power-rotation pact, forged by many of these same leaders under past administrations, that allotted eight years between the north and south for stability of the country.
Breaking it now, he warned, could spark backlash from the south and erode northern credibility. “We are known for keeping promises,” he said.
President Tinubu earned northern loyalty by backing Muhammadu Buhari’s 2015 rise against southern incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, Coomassie noted.
“This man (Tinubu) supported one of the greatest dreams of a northern Nigeria – to make sure that Buhari becomes the president. He made that dream come into reality for the North. It was one of the joyous moments in the North when Buhari became the president. Tinubu stood next to Buhari, supported Buhari to the end while going against his southern brother, Goodluck Jonathan,”Coomassie said.
He acknowledged that Buhari’s own eight years also fell short of expectations.
Instead of joining leaders’ “fight” against President Tinubu—which Coomassie called a personal power play— the academic urged dialogue.
President Tinubu, he said, is receptive: “He likes to listen, he takes advice.”
Coomassie pledged to lead northern youth in conveying grievances directly to the President, pushing for better representation and grooming a northern successor for post-2027.
He also promised to massively mobilize northern Nigerians, particularly key stakeholders, to reject hate-mongering by disgruntled leaders in the region and stand by the administration’s transformative reforms aimed at securing the nation’s future.
“Dialogue and communication are what is going to bring this government to do what the people need,” he said.
