A heavy stillness grips the hall. At the centre stands Basorun Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola unyielding, eyes fixed. Opposite him sits President Bola Tinubu composed at first, but tense beneath it.
Imaginary National Dialogue: The Reckoning (Hard Verdict Edition)
Venue: June 12 Memorial Hall, Lagos
Date: 2026.
A heavy stillness grips the hall. At the centre stands Basorun Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola unyielding, eyes fixed. Opposite him sits President Bola Tinubu composed at first, but tense beneath it.
Behind them, the silent witnesses.. Beko Ransome-Kuti, Uncle Bola Ige, Papa Abraham Adesanya, Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu and Papa Adekunle Ajasin.
Abiola: Mr President, no long speeches. Straight answers. Is Nigeria better governed today than when you took office?
Tinubu: We are making progress under difficult…
Abiola: Yes or no?
Tinubu: Progress is being made..
Abiola: That is not an answer. Next question. Did you remove economic burdens or redistribute them downward?
Tinubu: We corrected structural imbalances…
Abiola: Did you protect the people before imposing the correction?
Tinubu: Measures were introduced.
Abiola: Before or after?
Tinubu: After, but..
Abiola: Then you punished first and planned later. That is not reform; that is mismanagement.
(A murmur runs through the hall.)
(Beko Ransome-Kuti steps forward, voice cutting.)
Beko Ransome-Kuti: Mr President, simple question. Are Nigerians accessing healthcare more easily today?
Tinubu: We are expanding systems
Beko Ransome-Kuti: Easier or harder?
Tinubu: It varies…
Beko Ransome-Kuti: Then your system is failing the test of equity. A government that cannot secure basic care has no moral claim to success.
(Bola Ige rises sharply.)
Bola Ige: Rule of law. Clear question. Are your allies subjected to the same scrutiny as your opponents?
Tinubu: The law is blind
Bola Ige: Then why does it appear to see some and ignore others?
Tinubu: That perception is…
Bola Ige: Perception becomes reality when you refuse to correct it.
(Abraham Adesanya speaks, measured but firm.)
Adesanya: Elections. Do all Nigerians trust the process that produced your mandate?
Tinubu: The process was constitutional…
Adesanya: Trust, yes or no?
Tinubu: There are concerns, but…
Adesanya: Then legitimacy is weakened. Democracy cannot stand on disputed confidence.
(Ndubuisi Kanu cuts in.)
Kanu: Security. Are Nigerians safer?
Tinubu: Operations are ongoing…
Kanu: Safer, yes or no?
Tinubu: We are improving…
Kanu: That is not safety.That is hope. Citizens require results not assurances.
(Adekunle Ajasin leans on his cane, voice steady.)
Ajasin: Federalism. Have you reduced central control in real terms?
Tinubu: We are working on reforms…
Ajasin: Reduced, yes or no?
Tinubu: Not yet fully…
Ajasin: Then nothing fundamental has changed.
(Abiola steps closer now, voice lower, sharper.)
Abiola: Mr President, every answer you give avoids the question. Every defence you mount avoids the result. Let us summarise:
Economy-uncertain.
Healthcare-strained.
Rule of law-questioned.
Elections-contested.
Security-unsettled.
Federalism-unrealised.
Which of these would you call success?
Tinubu: Governance is complex. You cannot reduce…
Abiola: Complexity is not a shield for failure.
(A long pause. Tinubu shifts, but says nothing.)
Abiola: You came to power on the strength of a struggle you did not complete. We completed it with sacrifice. You inherited it with expectation. Yet what we see is not consolidation, but dilution.
Tinubu: That is your interpretation.
Abiola: No. It is the pattern your own answers have revealed.
(The five men rise together. No anger now only finality.)
Beko Ransome-Kuti: The people’s welfare is not secured.
Bola Ige: The rule of law is not convincingly upheld.
Adesanya: Electoral trust is not fully established.
Kanu: Security is not reliably guaranteed.
Ajasin: Federalism is not meaningfully advanced.
(They turn, as one, toward Tinubu.)
All Five (in unison): This is not the democracy we fought for.
(Abiola faces Tinubu for the last time.)
Abiola: Final question, Mr President and answer it if you can.
If those who fought for democracy cannot recognise it in your stewardship… what exactly are you governing?
(Tinubu opens his mouth then stops. No answer comes.)
(Abiola nods once, decisive.)
Abiola: Then the verdict is clear.
Measured against promise, deficient.
Measured against expectation, disappointing.
Measured against history, poor.
This administration has not risen to the standard demanded of it.
(The hall falls into a deep, unbroken silence.)
Abiola: Case concluded.
(The five stand unmoving, their judgement hanging heavier than any applause.)
