Why I supported Tinubu — Bimbo Akintola

Nollywood icon, Bimbo Akintola, has never been one to shy away from controversial topics. In a recent interview on In Conversation With Chude, she has once again placed herself in the spotlight. The a...

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Published 6 Dec 2025

By Chidinma Enweani

Nigerian actress Bimbo Akintola poses during a portrait session at the premiere of the film Recall directed by Kunle Afolayan in Lagos on November 7, 2024. (Photo by OLYMPIA DE MAISMONT AFP)

Nollywood icon, Bimbo Akintola, has never been one to shy away from controversial topics. In a recent interview on In Conversation With Chude, she has once again placed herself in the spotlight.

The actress shed light on her personal reason behind her decision to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during the 2023 general elections: bullying.

The actress explained that her reason for endorsing Tinubu was simply a direct response to the aggressive online attacks of a rival candidate’s supporters.

She specifically mentioned feeling provoked into publicly backing the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate due to the intense pressure and cyberbullying directed at her and some of her colleagues who showed support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during the 2023 general elections.

She said, “I supported President Tinubu because somebody annoyed me with their bullying,” Akintola stated matter-of-factly.

“Nigerians are annoying. Don’t bully other people. We have our right to differences of opinion. You don’t like this man [Tinubu], cool, you have the right not to like him. You prefer this person, good for you. But don’t bully others.”

The actress made it clear that her decision was, in part, a stand for the right to hold a differing opinion without fear of intimidation or harassment.

She condemned and made reference to how popular veteran actress Joke Silva also faced severe online criticism for her choice of candidate.

She explained, “They bullied aunty Joke to the point that someone wrote something that was so inhumane,” she recalled. “So, I made a video and said, ‘I’m also supporting Tinubu, kill me, let me see if you can change my mind.'”

She further explained that online hostility pushed her to take a stance and that she used that to send a direct message to online attackers.

She urged Nigerians to embrace tolerance and respect for different opinions and perspectives, noting that political disagreement should not translate into personal abuse.

“We need to stop bullying. We need to agree that we can never agree with everybody,” she asserted. “That’s what makes us great and beautiful. If we are all the same, it would be a boring life.

Till tomorrow, you might not agree that he was the best person for the job, but at that point, that was who I wanted, that was who I voted for. You can’t take my voice away from me; it’s mine,” she expressed.

In the Nigerian political landscape, voting is rarely a simple, rational process. While factors like ethnicity, religion, and regionalism have long been recognised as dominant forces, Akintola’s experience shows how deeply personal and emotional the political environment has become, as well as the contentious nature of political allegiance in Nigeria.

Bimbo Akintola is a Nollywood actress who was born to a father from Oyo State and a mother from Edo State, Nigeria. She studied at Maryland Convent Private School in Lagos State. She proceeded to Command Day Secondary School, Lagos. She earned a degree in Theatre Arts from the University of Ibadan.

She began portraying a student alongside her peers for the school’s end-of-year theatre events, encouraged by her mother. Her enthusiasm for performing intensified as she participated in more plays, eventually becoming second nature.

The actress used to perform every weekend with the late Jaiye Aboderin at a club called Divine on Allen Avenue in Lagos when she was still in school.

Her acting debut was when she featured in the film Owo Blow in 1995 alongside Femi Adebayo, and she followed up with Out of Bounds in 1997, with Richard Mofe Damijo. She was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role at the 2013 Nollywood Movies Awards.

Guardian Life