President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has dismissed claims that his administration is pushing Nigeria toward a one-party state, insisting that such a political structure is not in the country’s best interest.
Speaking during a special address to a joint session of the National Assembly on Thursday as part of the 2025 Democracy Day celebrations, the President countered mounting concerns over recent defections into the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
According ti him, “To those who ring the alarm that the APC is intent on a one-party state, I offer you a most personal promise. While your alarm may be as a result of your panic, it rings in error.
“At no time in the past, nor any instance in the present, and at no future juncture shall I view the notion of a one-party state as good for Nigeria.”
He emphasised that neither in the past, present, nor future would he ever support the idea of a one-party system, stressing that he had never attempted to interfere with political party registrations by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Referencing his time as Lagos State Governor from 1999 to 2007, Tinubu recalled how he stood as the lone opposition governor in the South-West during a period when the then-ruling party allegedly tried to eliminate political pluralism.
“In 2003, when the then-governing party tried to sweep the nation clean of political opposition through plot and manipulation, I was the last of the progressive governors standing in my region,” he said.
While reaffirming his support for a multi-party democracy, Tinubu said he would not turn away opposition members who choose to join the APC of their own volition.
He also used the opportunity to pay tribute to his predecessor, former President Muhammadu Buhari, for officially recognising June 12 as Democracy Day, and acknowledged the role of Chief MKO Abiola as a central figure in Nigeria’s democratic journey.
The President’s remarks come amid a wave of political realignments and criticism from opposition figures who accuse the APC of attempting to entrench its dominance at the national level.
