2027: Bandits collect taxes, govt offers excuses — Donald Duke

By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA—Presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Dr. Donald Duke, on Wednesday delivered a strong critique of Nigeria’s security and governance situation, saying parts of the country are now effectively under the control of criminal groups.

Speaking at an event in Abuja where he received the PRP Certificate of Return and the party flag ahead of the 2027 general elections, Duke said successive governments have failed in their primary responsibility to protect citizens.

“Our land has become so desolate that bandits, gangsters and kidnappers collect taxes while government collects excuses,” he said.

He said the worsening security situation had placed heavy economic and social burdens on Nigerians, noting that insecurity must be addressed as the foundation for national recovery.

Citing figures attributed to the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, Duke claimed that about N2 trillion was paid as ransom to kidnappers in 2025, describing it as a significant share of the federal budget.

He argued that governments at all levels had lost focus on their core duty of ensuring safety and order, insisting that insecurity has contributed to food inflation, rural abandonment and rising emigration of skilled professionals.

“The truth is that we have lost focus. Political gangsters and highwaymen have laid siege to and appropriated our land,” he said.

Duke outlined key priorities for a PRP-led administration, including security reform, education, healthcare, energy, agriculture and industrial development. He also advocated free and compulsory education up to senior secondary level, universal health coverage, and stronger intelligence-led policing.

He stressed the need for Nigeria to boost local production, saying the country cannot continue relying heavily on imports while domestic industries remain weak.

“We must produce what we need. We cannot continue keeping the factories of the world running while ours remain shut down,” he said.

On energy, Duke criticised gas flaring, describing it as a long-standing economic waste. He said Nigeria continues to lose billions of cubic feet of gas daily that could be harnessed for industrial use.

He also faulted the state of public education, arguing that the political elite must show commitment by enrolling their children in local schools.

“Until we send our own children to local schools, we, the elite, will never devote the attention and resources our education system desperately requires,” he said.

Duke said government success should be measured by improvements in citizens’ living standards, job creation and access to basic services, rather than macroeconomic indicators alone.

He framed the 2027 election as a choice between entrenched political interests and ordinary Nigerians, calling for a shift in leadership priorities.

“The scavengers have had their turn. Now it is the turn of the common man… and I, Donald Duke, seek to be their champion,” he said.

Earlier, PRP National Chairman, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, said the party represents an alternative path built on accountability, reform and better governance, urging Nigerians to consider a new political direction ahead of the elections.

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