By Kingston Magare 26.6.2026
Nigerians have peppered First Lady Oluremi Tinubu over her suggestions to impoverished Nigerians to try the Akara, “Agbado” roasted corn and Kuli Kuli business.
Mrs Tinubu made the remarks Wednesday in Abuja during her “Renewed Hope” initiative outreach.
“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,” Mrs. Tinubu stated in a video clip shared on X social media by News Central 247
Her comments created a twitter storm with some X users accusing the First Lady of being detached from the reality of the economic hardship that has hit the ordinary Nigerian man and woman.
@ADCVanguard_: “This is exactly how disconnected Nigeria’s ruling class has become from the reality of ordinary citizens.”
@ireteeh: “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.”
@firstladyship: “Senator OluRemi Tinubu holds the firm belief that women should be empowered with grants to start akara, roasted corn, & kulikuli business by the roadside in 2026. That’s her worldview. That’s her definition of Women Empowerment. That is how a — 21st century First Lady thinks?”
@Peter4Nigeria: “@SenRemiTinubu thank you for the advice ma, i have started my Akara business, I added a few Ogi, Yam dindin and some potatoes, by next week i should be adding Ogiri and Okpehi ma.”
@Akikanju1568901: “ Akara is one of the most lucrative businesses in Nigeria.”
@PemiOladapo, wrote: “There’s dignity in labour… these are our local snacks! People should start it and scale it!”
@TossynBankz_, argued that the issue was not the nature of the businesses but the broader economic context.
“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.
Oluremi Tinubu...speaking words Nigerians don't want to hear.