President Bola Tinubu has dismissed allegations that
the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is weakening the opposition through
coercion, insisting that recent defections into the party were voluntary.
The President spoke during an interfaith Iftar with
senators at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, amid growing criticism that the
APC is expanding its ranks by pressuring opposition figures to switch
allegiance.
“Critics must talk. When they accused me of killing
the opposition, but I didn’t have a gun. I could have given myself a licence
when I have the authority,” Tinubu said.
His remarks follow a string of high-profile defections
from opposition parties to the APC, developments that have stirred concerns
about a shrinking political space and a perceived imbalance in the democratic
landscape.
Tinubu, however, rejected claims of intimidation,
arguing that politicians who left their former parties did so out of choice
rather than compulsion.
“But I can’t blame anybody for jumping out of a
sinking ship if they did,” he said, suggesting that internal crises within
opposition parties may be responsible for the defections.
The President also referenced Nigeria’s broader
challenges, including terrorism and banditry, describing them as factors
straining the nation’s political and social systems.
“What we have faced in the challenging period of this
country, the terrorism and banditry, is causing us havoc,” he stated.
Calling for unity across party lines, Tinubu urged
political leaders to work together in the spirit of constitutional democracy.
“We should pull together, unite in a way that our
forefathers contemplated to bring about a constitutional democracy and pull us
together. They didn’t say we should fight. It’s a good thing that we are
working in harmony,” he added.
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