On Sunday, the Presidency rejected accusations that recent political defections from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress resulted from coercion by President Bola Tinubu or his allies.
It dismissed claims about creating a one-party state, maintaining that democracy is not threatened when politicians exercise their right of association.
“Nigerians migrating to the APC and expressing support for Tinubu are doing so out of their free will, based on the belief that the reforms being executed are in the interest of Nigerians and the unborn generation,” said Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, in a statement titled ‘Democracy Strong and Alive in Nigeria.’
Onanuga’s response follows last Wednesday’s defection of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State, his predecessor, Ifeanyi Okowa, Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme, commissioners, local government chairmen and others.
Okowa ran as the PDP’s vice presidential candidate in the 2023 election.
The PDP, Labour Party, and NNPP currently struggle with internal crises worsened by defections to the APC, leaving these parties in disarray.
Some politicians claim these crises aim to weaken the opposition before 2027, an allegation the presidency denies.
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“The opposition cannot blame President Tinubu and the governing APC for their poor organisation, indiscipline, and gross incompetence in managing their affairs,” Onanuga stated.
He added, “While the opposition elements are understandably heartbroken and disillusioned over the failure of their fabled grand coalition to gain traction, we find it disturbing that they resorted to peddling false allegations of the promotion of a one-party state against President Bola Tinubu, who is working very hard to reverse decades of economic mismanagement of our country.
“Contrary to the false claims in the sponsored propaganda materials in circulation across mainstream and social media, democracy is not under any threat in Nigeria. Accusations that the administration is moving towards authoritarianism are baseless and exaggerated.
“We must add that no policy, official action, or directive from the Presidency seeks to ‘dismantle democracy’ or ‘weaken opposition or create a one-party state.'”
The Presidency stated that allegations of bribery, blackmail, and weaponising state institutions “only exist in the idle minds” of politicians and their agents “who have failed in their assigned duty of opposition.”
“It is certainly not part of President Tinubu’s job to organise or strengthen opposition parties,” it insisted.
The statement questioned the moral position of those who celebrated former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s defection to the Social Democratic Party and the formation of a regional coalition aimed at defeating President Tinubu in 2027, but now lament Nigeria’s supposed drift toward a one-party state and authoritarianism.
It argued that while “defenders of democracy” raised no concerns about politicians forming an anti-Tinubu coalition along regional lines before INEC authorised party activities, they quickly attribute political shifts in some states to “bribery, blackmail, and coercion” without evidence.
“Without any equivocation, freedom of association, freedom of speech and freedom of choice are part of the cherished ideals of democracy. When politicians and citizens can not freely join any association or political party of their choice or cannot openly express their views, democracy is imperilled.
“Those opposed to the Tinubu administration should understand that they can issue diatribes, without fear, against the government because we practice democracy.
“It is hypocrisy writ large when opposition politicians and their collaborators in the ‘human rights’ movement desire that the party of the President should implode so they can gain electoral advantage and cry wolf when their wish does not materialise,” the President said.
It also described as “a gross disservice to democracy” attempts to delegitimise some Nigerians’ political choices while supporting others’ rights to form coalitions against Tinubu and the APC.
Onanuga stated that under Tinubu, democracy remains strong, and the multiparty system will continue flourishing.
“His administration remains resolutely committed to upholding and strengthening the democratic foundations upon which our Fourth Republic has stood since 1999. Politicians changing party affiliation is not new or peculiar to Nigeria.
“In more advanced democracies, there are ready examples of notable politicians, statesmen and women who changed their parties,” he added.
The presidential aide said Tinubu and the APC’s National Working Committee, led by Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, deserve praise for making the governing party attractive to Nigerians wishing to participate in the democratic process.
“President Tinubu is an avowed Democrat and a firm believer in multiparty democracy. His political activism and democratic credentials in galvanising and strengthening opposition platforms as a force that defeated a sitting President and the then ruling party attest to his profound credibility as a tested and relentless defender of multiparty democracy.
“We urge all Nigerians to join hands with the administration in protecting our democracy by respecting their choices and giving a wide berth to peddlers of alarming narratives rooted in fiction,” the statement concluded.
