They Sent Their Children Abroad, Now They Want Yours to Take Student Loans” — Sowore Slams Nigerian Leaders

African Action Congress (AAC) leader and presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has criticized several top Nigerian political figures for sending their children to universities abroad while, according to him, failing to build or strengthen the country’s public education system.

Sowore made the remarks while sharing photographs of the children of prominent politicians, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike, Anambra State Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo and Minister of Works David Umahi, celebrating their graduations from universities overseas.

According to Sowore, the images highlight what he described as the disconnect between Nigeria’s political elite and the realities facing millions of ordinary citizens who rely on the country’s struggling public education system.

“These are the same people who have served as governors, ministers of education, senators, and other top public officials, yet they never built or strengthened a single university they were proud or comfortable enough to send their own children to,” Sowore said.

He argued that while political leaders enrol their children in some of the world’s best universities, many Nigerian students are left to contend with underfunded institutions, prolonged academic disruptions and deteriorating infrastructure.

Sowore also criticised the Federal Government’s student loan programme, saying it places additional financial pressure on families already grappling with economic hardship.

“Instead, they ask ordinary Nigerians to celebrate student loans while millions of families are already overburdened by economic hardship,” he stated.

The AAC presidential candidate questioned whether the same leaders who champion the student loan initiative relied on such loans to educate their own children abroad.

“Ask yourself, did Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nyesom Wike, Charles Chukwuma Soludo, Senator Engineer David Nweze Umahi, CON, and others take out student loans to send their children to universities in the United Kingdom? The answer is no,” he said.

According to Sowore, resources that should have been invested in improving Nigeria’s universities have instead been used to sustain what he described as the privileges of the country’s political class.

“Their children attended some of the best universities abroad, while public universities at home were neglected.

“The public resources that should have transformed education for millions of Nigerians instead financed the lifestyles and privileges of a political elite,” he alleged.

He further argued that many young Nigerians are now left with limited options, claiming that government policies are pushing children from less privileged backgrounds either to borrow money to pursue higher education or to enlist in the military.

“They are either asking the children of the poor to borrow to go to school or asking them to join the Nigerian Army to go die for their children,” Sowore said.

Calling for political change, the AAC leader maintained that Nigeria requires leaders who will prioritise investments in education and create equal opportunities for all citizens regardless of their social status.

“If our country is to have a fresh lease of life, these wicked men must be urgently replaced with leadership committed to investing in the education and future of all Nigerians, not just the privileged few,” he added.

The comments come amid ongoing debates over the condition of Nigeria’s tertiary education sector, government funding of public universities and the implementation of the student loan scheme.