Former Cross River State Governor and presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke, has declared that his personal friendship with President Bola Tinubu remains strong despite his dissatisfaction with the direction of the President’s administration.

Duke explained that his disagreement with Tinubu’s political decisions and governance approach should not be interpreted as personal hostility, stressing that their relationship dates back to 1998.

The former governor made the remarks on Monday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, monitored by DAILY POST in Abeokuta.

“President Tinubu is my friend since 1998 but I don’t like the direction he’s going. I think we will not achieve much going in this direction. But when it comes to personality, we remain friends,” Duke said.

His comments came amid discussions about Nigeria’s economic challenges and efforts by opposition parties to establish a common platform ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Duke criticised the hardship facing Nigerians, arguing that the success of government policies should be measured by their actual impact on citizens rather than official claims of economic progress.

He also questioned the effectiveness of measures introduced by the Tinubu administration to ease the effects of fuel subsidy removal, foreign exchange reforms and other economic policies.

When asked about government interventions, including conditional cash transfers, small-business grants, student loans, minimum wage adjustments and the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, Duke challenged the interviewer to identify any programme that had personally improved his circumstances.

“Not one of these policies, would I say, has benefited me in any way,” he said.

He maintained that temporary financial assistance could not provide a lasting solution to poverty, insisting that government should prioritise policies that enable citizens to become productive and earn sustainable incomes.

“I told you that the mission statement of a government ought to be the productivity of its people,” Duke said.

The PRP presidential hopeful further expressed concern over the business environment, pointing to high interest rates, rising energy costs and the difficulties confronting businesses that depend on bank loans to finance their operations.

According to him, Nigeria must make better use of its abundant natural and human resources to boost local production, strengthen businesses and reduce reliance on imported goods.

Duke’s remarks underscored his position that personal relationships should remain separate from political accountability, stressing that public officeholders must be judged by their policies and their ability to improve the living conditions of citizens.

He maintained that his criticism of Tinubu was based on disagreements over governance and economic priorities, rather than any personal dispute with the President.