The All Progressives Congress (APC) has rejected claims that Nigeria’s democracy is under threat, describing recent comments by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as alarmist and ironic.
Abubakar, through a statement issued on Tuesday by his spokesman, Paul Ibe, had accused the administration of President Bola Tinubu of deliberately weakening opposition parties and shrinking the democratic space, warning that the trend could lead to a de facto one-party state. He also alleged that Nigerians had endured nearly three years of severe economic hardship under the current government, alongside policies he claimed undermined democratic values.
Reacting to the remarks, the Lagos State APC spokesman, Seye Oladejo, said the former vice president and members of the opposition were merely seeking relevance. In a statement issued on Thursday in Lagos, Oladejo insisted that democratic institutions were functioning normally under President Tinubu.
He urged opposition figures to stop predicting the collapse of a democracy that, according to him, continues to mature despite repeated “doomsday prophecies.”
“Nigeria’s democracy is not under threat; what is under threat is the opposition’s fading relevance,” Oladejo said.
He noted that since May 29, 2023, elections had been conducted, courts had adjudicated disputes, the legislature had exercised oversight, and citizens had continued to enjoy constitutionally guaranteed freedoms.
“The opposition has spoken freely, protested freely, and litigated freely—hardly the attributes of a nation under democratic siege,” he added.
Oladejo further claimed that internal contradictions within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) posed a greater threat to the party than any action by the ruling APC. He described the coalition as fragile, driven by personal ambition rather than ideology, and warned that such arrangements were bound to collapse under their own weight.
According to him, winning and losing are integral parts of the democratic process and democracy does not fail simply because personal ambitions are frustrated.
He maintained that Nigeria’s democracy remains resilient and firmly anchored under President Tinubu’s leadership, stressing that ongoing reforms are rooted in constitutional order, the rule of law and democratic accountability.
Oladejo advised Atiku Abubakar and his allies to face political realities, insisting that democracy in Nigeria is not collapsing.
“Nigeria is not afraid. Democracy is not collapsing. It is only the opposition that is frightened by its own shadow and by the reality that Nigerians have moved on,” he said.