Birthdays in Nigeria are never subtle affairs. But when the celebrant is Seyi Tinubu, the president, Bola Tinubu’s first son, birthday wishes become a full-blown performance.
Tinubu, whose birthday is today, October 13, would not get the random “HBD, Boss!” messages flooding the timeline. Instead, we would see a digital parade of political hopefuls, social climbers, loyalists, and professional well-wishers all trying to outdo each other.
From the poets writing 10-slide tributes to the subtle critics hiding shade under emojis, the internet becomes a theatre of aspiration and irony.
Here are the 10 kinds of people who showed up online to wish Seyi Tinubu a happy birthday.
1. The Loyal APC Soldiers
These are the card-carrying members of Action Progressive Congress (APC), to which senior and junior Tinubu belong. About any elected official or important party member, get public wishes all the time. Now, imagine Seyi Tinubu, the party’s heir apparent and it’s a whole celebration.
To spot these loyal APC soldiers isn’t hard. They plaster their Facebook and X pages with birthday wishes written in press release format, and fill them with endearments like: “The future of youth empowerment, the bridge between generations, etc.” You can almost hear the campaign jingle in their captions. They’re in the same group chat as those who say “Office of the First Son of the President.”
2. Ronu People
You’re likely to mistake this category for the one above, though they aren’t the same. Ronu people can belong to any political party, and are the self-appointed “defenders” of the Yoruba Nation.
Their birthday message always starts with, “Happy birthday Oju Eko (meaning “Eyes of Lagos”). You’re a source of inspiration to us all.” If they’re trying to be posh, they’d say “Memento Vivre. Happy birthday to the King of Boys.” They don’t know Tinubu or have anything to do with him. They’re just happy to wish him a happy birthday because he’s a Yoruba son of an “Emilokan” President.
When they’re not celebrating a “son of the soil,” they’re fighting over the right way to spell “Owambe.”
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3. The Strategic Networkers
These ones have never met Seyi Tinubu and don’t know him personally, but they have been “meaning to connect.” Their well-wishes rarely fall far from “Happy birthday, boss of bosses. A true inspiration. More wins, sir!” Every line is a networking pitch disguised as a prayer, hoping one of his people will see it and call them for a business meeting.
Their profile bio reads something like, “Entrepreneur | Crypto | Logistics | God over Everything.”
4. Motivational Speakers
These ones won’t only wish Seyi Tinubu a happy birthday; they deliver a TED talk. They write things like, “Success isn’t by age, it’s by grace. Look at Seyi Tinubu, the definition of focus, discipline, consistency and divine alignment.”
They use Tinubu’s birthday as an opportunity to remind us that we, too, can make it if we stay consistent — as if consistency alone can fund a Lekki apartment or automatically make Nigerian musicians give you shout-outs in their songs.
If you scroll two tweets down the birthday wishes, the same person is complaining about NEPA and the new tax policy.
5. The Influencers and Opportunists
These ones smell “visibility” from a mile away. The second “Happy Birthday Seyi Tinubu” starts trending, they’re in the quotes with gratitude posts. You’d see tweets like “A visionary! A leader! A man of the people! God bless you abundantly, sir 🙏🏾💙 #STBDay”
Some will even tag him: “@egbonseyitinubu, thank you for all you do for the youth. We see you, sir 👏🏾👏🏾🔥” They don’t know him personally, but they know engagement when they see it because if they don’t post, how will Tinubu remember them when he’s “empowering the youths and creatives” next?
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6. The Local Government Loyalists
These ones are the grassroots soldiers. You’ll find them in the trenches of the comments section, typing like their next appointment depends on it, because it actually might. They’ve probably only met Tinubu once, during a photo-op when he came to commission a borehole, but that one handshake is now their entire political CV.
They’ll post a picture of him with captions like, “A leader with listening ears” and tag every political handle from @APCNigeria to @lagosstateofficeofsomething. By evening, they’ll be in a WhatsApp group shouting, “Have you people posted for Seyi? Don’t dull o, the Chief of Staff is watching.”
7. Other Politicians Who Want to Decamp to APC
These ones know that this is Nigeria, and power can be monarchical. So, they pitch their tent to an important government figure. Whether they’re old enough to be his father, they always start their posts with “My leader and brother, Seyi Tinubu…” like they’ve been friends since university.
Their captions are long enough to qualify as a manifesto, full of “renewed hope” and “youth empowerment,” even though the only empowerment they’ve ever given anyone was a few cups of rice during political campaigns.
Their posts are usually to signal their transfer of allegiance, so that when you see them in agbada by the next press briefing, casually saying “We in APC…” you’re not too shocked.
8. The Content Farmers
They don’t follow him and don’t care about him. They want to go viral and only care about engagement. They will post: “Say what you want about Seyi Tinubu, but he’s doing something right.”
Then they go to bed, wake up and find their post has 500 comments arguing in the replies. Mission accomplished.
9. Aspiring Lagos Big Boys
These ones are dreaming of being at the top of the class system. They are the young guys who see Seyi Tinubu as the ultimate role model. Think private jets, Tesla and political access. Some have no clue what he is about and how he got his money, but they just want they may call his kind of “doings.”
On his birthday, they post things like, “One day, they’ll mention my name beside yours, boss 🙏🏾🔥.” Well, nothing to see here. Just people hoping their own “Seyi Tinubu Moment” starts before their rent expires.
10. The Non-Well-Wishers
These ones don’t say “Happy Birthday”, they drop thinkpieces. They see Seyi Tinubu’s birthday trend and suddenly turn into full-time political analysts. “In a country where the minimum wage is ₦30k, someone’s son is cutting cake in Dubai?” they’d tweet, unprovoked. Just long threads about nepotism, privilege, and “the real problem with Nigeria’s elite structure.”
They won’t wish him well, and they side-eye every birthday post like, “So na our tax money dey celebrate too?” or “Is this leadership?” The closest to a birthday wish from them is a sarcastic “E go be.”
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