President Bola Tinubu has said he owes no cabal any compensation as he funded his presidential ambition with his own wealth.

He made this known when he received a delegation of Islamic leaders led by Sheikh Bala Lau at the State House on Thursday, July 15, 2024.

According to Tinubu, his victory in the 2023 election was purely by divine intervention. The President refuted claims that he is being manipulated by some “cabals'' in his administration.

“I have no cabal. I have no sponsors. The money I spent on the elections was my personal fortune. At some point, the odds were against me; banks were locked. But Allah, the Almighty God, said I will be the President. Mine is to now follow the leading and teaching of the Almighty God. One of the most potent elements of defence is a good conscience. It is also a defence against corruption.

What should be uppermost in our minds is the future of our children. We have a lot to teach them on what it takes to be a good citizen and what it takes to be a responsible citizen,’’ the President said

Sharing his thoughts about the upcoming nationwide protests, President Tinubu said protests fuelled by anger and hate, could degenerate into violence and set the country backward.

“We are reworking the social welfare scheme to reach the ward level, which is the closest to our people. We are going to ensure that we re-establish connection with the wards again so that we can give allowances to the poor and the vulnerable.

The student loans will pay for school fees. There will be monetary support for the education of our children. The consumer credit will support citizens to buy cars and houses, and they can repay gradually. We have increased the minimum wage by more than 100 percent,’’ the President said.

President Tinubu described the ''sponsors'' of the August 1-10 protests as selfish, adding that they do not love the country.

“The sponsors of protests do not love our country. They have no love for the nation. They do not understand citizenship. They have alternative passports. They are in different parts of the world holding meetings virtually.

We do not want to turn Nigeria into Sudan. We are talking about hunger, not burials. We have to be careful. We should be careful with premature politics; politics of hate, and anger. The internet has made it possible to hold meetings in artificial settings. They hold meetings and sponsor anger,’’ the President told the religious leaders.