By Deborah Nnamdi
President Bola Tinubu, on Sunday, told the opposition parties in the country to lick their wounds and stop blaming him for their alleged gross incompetence in managing the affairs of their party.
The President also said politicians changing party affiliation is not new or peculiar to Nigeria, pointing out that in more advanced democracies, there are ready examples of notable politicians, statesmen, and women who changed their parties.
The President, who spoke via a statement issued by his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, wondered why the defection of some members of the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, like the immediate past governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, to the Social Democratic Party, SDP, should be celebrated, while the defection of some members of the opposition party should be condemned.
The statement titled: “Democracy strong and alive in Nigeria, ignore alarmists”, partly read: “We have read the alarming claims of disgruntled opposition figures, some partisan human rights crusaders and emergency defenders of democracy over recent defections of key members of opposition parties into the governing All Progressives Congress.
“The seismic shift caused by Akwa Ibom Governor Umo Eno’s open declaration of support for President Bola Tinubu, the defection of the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, the former vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last election, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, and the principal political actors in Delta and Rivers States certainly threw the opposition and their sympathizers into disarray.
“While the opposition elements are understandably heartbroken over the failure of their fabled grand coalition to gain traction, we find it disturbing that they resorted to peddling false allegations of promoting a one-party State against President Bola Tinubu, who is working very hard to reverse decades of economic mismanagement in our country.
“Contrary to the false claims in the 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.” Accusations of bribery, blackmail, and the weaponization of state institutions only exist in the idle minds of politicians and their agents who have failed in their assigned role of opposition and are fishing for scapegoats.”
The statement said,” The opposition cannot blame President Tinubu and the governing APC for their poor organization, indiscipline, and gross incompetence in managing their affairs. It is certainly not part of President Tinubu’s job to organize or strengthen opposition parties.”
“We want to state that democracy is not threatened or undermined simply because politicians exercise their rights to freedom 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.
“It is a gross disservice to democracy in itself for these emergency defenders of democracy to delegitimize the political choices of some Nigerians while upholding the choices of others to form a coalition against Tinubu and APC.”
The statement said that under President Tinubu, democracy is strong, and the multiparty democratic system will continue to flourish unhindered. His administration remains resolutely committed to upholding and strengthening the democratic foundations upon which our Fourth Republic has stood since 1999
“President Tinubu and the National Working Committee of the APC, under the leadership of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, deserve commendation for making the ruling party viable and attractive to all Nigerians willing 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 galvanizing and strengthening opposition platforms as a force that defeated a sitting President and the then ruling party attest to his credibility as a tested defender of multiparty democracy,” it said
It urged all Nigerians to join hands with the administration in protecting democracy by respecting the people’s choices and giving alarmists, who draw their narratives from the pool of fiction, a wide berth.
