The national youth leader of Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress, Dayo Israel has ignited a social media storm after announcing that he handed brand-new 2026 Toyota Prado vehicles to selected party youth leaders to support election mobilisation, a post he deleted about three hours later as criticism mounted.
In the now-deleted post on Sunday, Israel said the vehicles were meant to strengthen the party’s grassroots mobilisation and thanked Oluremi Tinubu, wife of President Bola Tinubu, for what he described as her continued support for the party structure under his leadership.
“Today, I presented brand new 2026 Prado to my committed selected youth leaders to aid their election mobilisation activities. I am grateful to my Mummy, H.E Mrs Oluremi Tinubu for her continuous support to the party structure under my leadership,” he wrote. He added that “the party is supreme and that supremacy will show in our actions in this election period, we will deliver polling unit by polling unit.”
The post did not state how many vehicles were presented, how much they cost or where the funding came from. But it had already been screenshotted and circulated widely on X before it was taken down, drawing sharp criticism from Nigerians who questioned the timing and the optics of such a display amid economic hardship.
One X user, Harmless, contrasted the announcement with President Tinubu’s recent remarks in Kaduna blaming the opposition for hunger and hardship.
“Yesterday in Kaduna, Tinubu was blaming the opposition for the hunger and hardship in the country. Today, Dayo Israel, APC youth leader is casually dashing out 2026 Prado SUV to his fellow youth leaders,” the user wrote. Another user, Prince Adeshina, questioned the source of the money, writing: “Most hospitals in Nigeria don’t have MRI machines, yet Dayo Israel, a national youth leader of the APC, can buy seven 2026 Prados for his friends? Where did he get the money?”
The figure of seven vehicles appeared in social media reactions, not in Israel’s original post. One widely shared reaction alleged that the party had spent over N1.5 billion on the SUVs, a claim that could not be independently verified from the post or the available information.
The criticism spiralled beyond the cost to the broader question of judgment, with users accusing the youth leader of flaunting luxury at a time when many Nigerians are struggling.
The backlash also revived older complaints about Israel’s conduct. Dr Dípò Awójídé, an X user, referred to the Osun election period and accused Israel of posting a skit while party members were awaiting results, calling the latest post another example of poor judgment.
“At a time when millions are making sacrifices and trusting that reforms will deliver results, this kind of conduct is not helpful. Do better Dayo!” he wrote.
Another user, Ajayi Oriyomi, questioned Israel’s leadership credentials, saying that while he was intelligent, he had never contested an election at any level and lacked the capacity to lead.
The episode has turned a party mobilisation announcement into a public-relations headache for the APC, amplifying questions about accountability, party spending and the gap between official messages of economic sacrifice and the visible perks enjoyed by political operatives.
