The Presidency has said the wave of defections from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) is purely voluntary and not influenced by President Bola Tinubu or any of his associates.
Responding to allegations of orchestrating a one-party state, the Presidency maintained that Nigeria’s democracy remains robust, stating that the freedom of association is being fully respected.
“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 Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, in a statement issued Sunday.
The statement, titled ‘Democracy Strong and Alive in Nigeria,’ comes amid the latest defections, including those of Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Deputy Governor Monday Onyeme, commissioners, and local government chairmen.
Notably, Okowa had been the PDP’s vice-presidential candidate during the 2023 general elections.
With major opposition parties like the PDP, Labour Party, and NNPP currently dealing with internal crises and losing members to the APC, some critics have alleged that the ruling party is manipulating these defections to weaken the opposition ahead of the 2027 elections—an accusation the Presidency firmly rejected.
“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 continued, “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.”
Onanuga emphasized that, “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.”
He further stressed, “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.’”
Accusations that defections are driven by bribery, blackmail, or state weaponisation, the Presidency said, “only exist in the idle minds” of opposition figures and their sympathizers.
“It is certainly not part of President Tinubu’s job to organise or strengthen opposition parties,” the statement insisted.
Onanuga also challenged what he described as double standards among critics who had earlier celebrated former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s alleged defection to the Social Democratic Party and the building of a regional coalition aimed at unseating Tinubu in 2027, but now complain about the APC’s growing strength.
He noted that, “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.”
According to him, opposition figures and civil rights activists critical of the APC are the same ones who lament when their plans falter.
“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,” Onanuga added.
He warned that undermining the political decisions of Nigerians while applauding opposition coalitions is a “gross disservice to democracy.”
Onanuga affirmed that under President Tinubu’s leadership, Nigeria’s democracy remains vibrant and resilient, with the multiparty system secure.
“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,” he said.
Pointing to practices in advanced democracies where party-switching is not unusual, Onanuga praised both Tinubu and the APC’s National Working Committee, led by Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, for building a political party that is attractive to Nigerians.
“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,” Onanuga stated.
He concluded by urging Nigerians to support efforts to protect democracy and to ignore alarmist narratives.
“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,” he said.
