By Remi Adebayo
Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has warned that President Bola Tinubu's focus is either to have his way in the 2027 election or destroying Nigeria’s democracy.
Atiku, a foemer Nigeria's vice president made the claim while reacting to what he described as the authoritarian action of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nysom Wike, in denying the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) access to a public event centre in Abuja for the affirmation of its presidential candidate.
In a statement on Saturday by the Atiku Media Office, Atiku described as reprehensible, the action of the minister to repress the PDP, stating that the denial further manifested Tinubu’s tactic to frustrate political opposition ahead of the 2027 polls.
“The action of Minister Wike to deny the PDP the opportunity from holding an event in line with its constitutional right represents a blatant abuse of the party’s rights and an unacceptable infringement on the freedom of association and peaceful assembly as guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
“Private and public facilities in the Federal Capital Territory or indeed anywhere in the country exist to serve all Nigerians irrespective of their political affiliation. The Minister’s refusal to allow a legitimate political activity to hold in such a venue is not only discriminatory but also a clear demonstration of partisan interference by the Tinubu administration.
"We have seen a pattern of political interference through public institutions aimed at weakening opposition parties under the current administration. We have also seen, by the case under reference with the PDP, ditto the ADC during its national convention held in April, that the Tinubu government is literally pushing political opposition out of space.
“It was under the same leadership of Wike in the FCT that a sponsored faction of the ADC had a public event a few days ago with no one threatening them.
“This sets a dangerous precedent that undermines Nigeria’s democracy, the rule of law and the integrity of our elections
“This high-handed action is consistent with President Bola Tinubu’s emerging pattern of deploying state institutions and resources to frustrate political opposition and weaken the democratic process in the build-up to the 2027 presidential election.
“By weaponizing the FCT administration against opposition parties, the Tinubu administration is revealing its intolerance for political pluralism and its determination to create an uneven playing field that favors only the ruling party and its cohorts,” the statement said.
The statement further pointed out that Atiku views the development as part of a broader strategy to stifle dissent and rig the political environment in favour of the ruling party.
According to the statement, "Tinubu is a steamroller of impunity who is shamelessly determined to destroy everything our democracy stands for.
“The Tinubu government is afraid of free and fair elections and their tactics to suppress the opposition will not succeed.
“Nigerians are resolute in their demand for genuine democracy, accountability, and leadership that respects the constitution rather than subverting it.”
Atiku Media Office called on the Minister to immediately "stop this unconstitutional action and grant all opposition parties unfettered access to public and private facilities for their legitimate political activities.
“We equally urge all democratic stakeholders, civil society organizations, and well-meaning Nigerians to rise against this creeping authoritarianism before it further erodes the foundations of our republic.”
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