Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has criticised some journalists and opposition figures for allegedly presenting their personal opinions as the views of Nigerians.
In a post on X on Thursday, Keyamo described the practice as “amusing,” questioning how individuals could claim to represent “the Nigerian people.”
He wrote: “It is amusing to see how some journalists and core opposition characters, posing as ‘activists’, continually express their own deep-seated biases as the wishes of ‘the Nigerian people’. How and where did they aggregate the views of ‘the Nigerian people’?”
Keyamo also challenged the methods used to gauge public opinion, asking whether their conclusions were based on “the usual suspects who gather at the entrance of the National Assembly and pose for cameras; or the 15 Senators who voted against the majority of 94 Senators; or the less than 25 House members who walked out on the majority of over 300 members; or those vocal few who hop from one TV station to the next every day. Or those who gather under the comment section on social media and vent their spleen – just how did they aggregate the views of ‘the Nigerian people’?”
He further warned Nigerians to remain cautious as the election season approaches. “Some journalists and almost every so-called ‘neutral’ commentator or activist you see or hear in the media are all working for one interest or the other. They just don’t have the guts to come out with their full chest to openly support the political party or candidate for which or whom they are working,” he added.
Keyamo’s remarks come amid heated debates over the recently signed Electoral Act 2026 (Amendment). President Bola Tinubu assented to the bill on Wednesday after its passage in the National Assembly. In the Senate, 65 lawmakers voted in favour while 15 opposed. In the House of Representatives, 292 members approved the bill, 24 opposed, and a few walked out in protest.
Critics, particularly opposition parties and civil society groups, argued that certain provisions, especially those on electronic transmission of results, could compromise electoral integrity and favour the ruling All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2027 general elections. Observers noted that the debate has been dominated by a vocal few, raising questions about whether such views genuinely reflect the will of Nigerians.
The controversy peaked during Tuesday’s House plenary, which turned rowdy as opposition lawmakers clashed with their APC counterparts over provisions for electronic transmission of election results without a proviso.
