Nigerians on X (formerly Twitter) have pledged to persist in referring to President Bola Tinubu as “T-Pain” if his administration fails to address the escalating hardship in the country. The nickname, which has gained popularity on social media, represents the increasing dissatisfaction with the Nigerian government’s performance under President Tinubu’s leadership.
The moniker “T-Pain” originated from a satirical remix of American singer T-Pain’s track ‘Buy U A Drank’ by Nigerian satirist Dan Bello. The remix, titled ‘Nigerians, I Go Make You Poor,’ focuses on the economic difficulties caused by President Tinubu’s policies, such as the removal of fuel subsidies and the flotation of the exchange rate.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar also criticized President Tinubu and his administration on Saturday, joining the trend by referring to Tinubu as ‘T-Pain.’ Atiku accused the president of being indifferent to the growing hardship and daily eroding the material well-being of Nigerians.
In response, the Presidency cautioned Nigerians against calling Tinubu ‘T-Pain,’ describing it as a stain on his reputation. However, Nigerian netizens have stated that they will continue to use the nickname unless the president alters his economic policies.
“As long as the people continue to feel the pain of misgovernance, the name will continue,” said a user named Izigab. Another user, Eze Arinze, commented, “The worst way to reject a nickname is by telling people to stop calling you that name. That is when you trigger more momentum.”
Other users expressed their frustration with the government’s priorities. Davidpine wrote, “Rather than trying to seek out ways of addressing Nigeria’s problems it is frivolous things such as this that bothers you?” Dagreatdey4you added, “Now, the name is permanent cos you don’t tell people not to call you by a nickname… T-pain for life.”
Some users also raised concerns about the government’s reaction to citizens’ freedom of expression. Adanniat wrote, “Tinubu’s regime’s constant threat to citizens’ freedom of expression is totally unacceptable.” Valencia questioned, “Una sure say dis democracy go fit work for this tenure because den go soon go house to house dey go arrest o for freedom of speech violation.”
Credit: The Nigeria Lawyer