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The Presidency has stated that the recent defections of opposition politicians to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) were voluntary and not under any form of duress, as has been speculated in some quarters.

Denying accusations of a one-party state, the Presidency insisted that democracy is not under threat or undermined “simply because politicians exercise their rights of association.”

This was contained in a statement signed by the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Sunday.

“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,” Onanuga said.

This is coming after last Wednesday’s defection of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State, his predecessor, Ifeanyi Okowa, Deputy Governor, Monday Onyeme, commissioners, local government chairmen, among others.

The defection of Okowa, who was PDP’s presidential running mate in the last election, and others further depletes the main opposition party.

The other opposition parties, the Labour Party and the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP), are also grappling with internal crises, leaving observers to wonder if they could challenge the ruling party in 2027.

Some have alleged that the crisis within the opposition parties is being orchestrated by the ruling party, a claim that the Presidency has denied.

“The opposition cannot blame President Tinubu and the governing APC for their poor organisation, indiscipline, and gross incompetence in managing their affairs. It is certainly not part of President Tinubu’s job to organise or strengthen opposition parties.

“We find it curious that those who celebrated the defection of the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the formation of a regional grand coalition with the sole aim of defeating President Tinubu in the 2027 election are the same people shedding crocodile tears over Nigeria’s so-called drift to a one-party state and authoritarianism.

“While the latter-day defenders of democracy raised no anxious voice against the disgruntled politicians cobbling an anti-Tinubu, anti-APC coalition along dangerous regional lines, even before INEC blows the whistle for party politicking, they are quick to ascribe the political shifts in some states to “bribery, blackmail, and coercion” without any shred of evidence.

“Without any equivocation, freedom of association, freedom of speech and freedom of choice are part of the cherished ideals of democracy.  When politicians and citizens cannot freely join any association or political party of their choice or cannot openly express their views, democracy is imperilled.

“Those opposed to the Tinubu administration should understand that they can issue diatribes, without fear, against the government because we practice a thriving democracy.

“It is hypocrisy writ large when opposition politicians and their collaborators in the ‘human rights’ movement desire that the party of the President should implode so they can gain electoral advantage and cry wolf when their wish does not materialise.

“We want to state that democracy is not threatened or undermined simply because politicians exercise their rights to freedom of association.”

Onanuga maintained that under 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. Politicians changing party affiliation is not new or peculiar to Nigeria.

“In more advanced democracies, there are ready examples of notable politicians, statesmen and women who changed their parties,” he said.

Onanuga added that President Tinubu and the National Working Committee of the APC, under the leadership of 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 galvanising 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.

“We urge all Nigerians to join hands with the administration in protecting our democracy by respecting our people’s choices and giving alarmists, who draw their narratives from the pool of fiction, a wide berth,” the statement added.