Seyi Tinubu, president’s son celebrates 39th birthday with bags of branded rice in his name as Nigerians angrily reacts

Reactions are trailing the distribution of bags of rice to celebrate the birthday of Seyi Tinubu, the son of President Bola Tinubu.

Seyi clocked 39 on Sunday, October 13. The president’s son’s birthday was celebrated by different support groups across the country.

In photos circulating on social media, one of the groups was seen sharing bags of rice on the streets as Nigerians queued up for their turn.

Rice, the most common staple in Nigeria, has skyrocketed, becoming a luxury for the masses. A 50 kilogram of rice moved from N30,000 to over N100,000 in less than 18 months, owing to Tinubu’s economic policies.

To douse the pains from the scorching economic hardships for Nigerians, government and politicians have resorted to sharing bags of rice at every slightest opportunity, a strategy that has failed to curb the hunger in the country.

Analysts have also argued that the mass distribution of rice by the government and politicians is a major reason why the staple has been on the high side as some manufacturers now prefer to sell directly to them, thereby creating scarcity in the market.

However, many Nigerians have reacted to the distribution of bags of rice to mark Seyi Tinubu’s birthday. See some reactions below.

“A government that deliberately controls a staple food supply to create artificial scarcity before Christmas, then share it to a few within their party, who then go on to share it to people to win loyalty is an evil government. These people are much worse than you can imagine,” a social commentator, Osaretin Victor Asemota, said on his X account.

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“These guys are making rice so expensive, it’s appalling that they didn’t know about this up until now. With the rate they’re going, we might buy rice for 150k this December,” another X user, Godswill, said.

“I have always said it that there is a story behind the incessant rice sharing and that we should follow the money. One day, we will hear it in full,” another X user said.

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“Some people just like to exploit problems rather than solve them. The tragedy is some people will be thanking the same people who are exploiting them just because they got food that won’t last time a month,” Tola, another social commentator, said.

“They want to turn every single person in this country to a beggar so they can weaponize that desperation into buying votes. A criminal, treasonous, government,” Oluwa Tweezy said.