Remi Tinubu faces backlash over akara, roasted corn remarks

The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has come under criticism on social media after encouraging Nigerians to consider small-scale businesses such as selling akara, roasted corn and kuli-kuli, saying they require little capital to start.

Tinubu spoke while addressing State House Correspondents after the Renewed Hope Initiative’s second-quarter meeting with wives of state governors, held at the State House, Abuja, on Wednesday.

A video of her remarks was shared on Friday by News Channel 247.

She stated this while highlighting the efforts of the Renewed Hope Initiative to support vulnerable Nigerians through grants and other interventions.

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According to her, beneficiaries of the initiative were given grants, not loans, to enable them to start businesses.

“We’re trying to give hope, and to start Akara business doesn’t take a lot of money. To start roasting corn, or somebody even said kuli kuli doesn’t take much. We didn’t give them a loan; we gave it to them as a grant.

“So we’ve encouraged Nigerians as best as we could. What is within our hands, I have given, and I keep giving,” she said.

The First Lady said the initiative had also supported interventions in healthcare, agriculture, education and social investment.

She said she donated N2bn to tackle tuberculosis, N1bn for breast cancer interventions and N500m to address malnutrition.

“I remember giving for TB. When I heard there were so many TB cases, I gave N2 billion. To breast cancer, I gave a billion. For food malnutrition, I gave half a billion.

“So those are the things we’ve been doing and making sure we can make sure that whatever this government is trying to do, it will see the light of day,” she stated.

Tinubu added that the initiative had also provided scholarships, ICT training and support for agriculture and social investment programmes.

“The narrative has really changed, has changed to challenge the average man, whereas the average man is supposed to have hope. So I like the idea that Mr President say this is the Renewed Hope Agenda.

“We have to renew our hope, and that’s how we renew our hope, you know, and that’s what I have to tell Nigerians,” she said.

The remarks, however, triggered swift backlash on social media, with many Nigerians accusing the First Lady of trivialising the economic hardship facing ordinary citizens.

A user on X, @ADCVanguard_, said the video showed “exactly how disconnected Nigeria’s ruling class has become from the reality of ordinary citizens.”

Another user, @ireteeh, contrasted the initiative with private-sector efforts, saying, “The First Lady is empowering people with akara, corn, and kuli-kuli, while an ordinary citizen with limited resources is equipping people to build thriving careers in cybersecurity.”

A user identified as Nefertiti (@firstladyship) said, “Nigerians are in big trouble. There is fire on the mountain but the people are tired of running.”

However, some social media users, especially on X, defended the First Lady, insisting there was nothing wrong with encouraging Nigerians towards such businesses.

A user, @Akikanju1568901, said akara is “one of the most lucrative businesses in Nigeria,” with a low startup cost and high profit margin, adding that “akara sellers sent many kids… to universities, built houses, bought cars.”

Another user, @PemiOladapo, said, “There’s dignity in labour… these are our local snacks! People should start it and scale it!”

A user, @TossynBankz_, however, argued that the criticism was not about the businesses themselves but about timing.

“Nobody is mocking akara, roasted corn, or kuli-kuli. Those are honest businesses. The problem is that Nigerians are asking for a better economy, more jobs, and lower prices. Telling people to start selling akara in this situation just feels like the government doesn’t understand what people are going through,” the user wrote.