By Omeiza Ajayi & Juliet Umeh, ABUJA

A former National Vice Chairman (Northwest) of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Salihu Moh. Lukman, has warned that the unchecked personal ambitions of key opposition political figures would ultimately guarantee an easy victory for President Bola Tinubu and the ruling party in the 2027 general elections.

Lukman, before now, consistently advocated the need for former vice president Atiku Abubakar, Mr Peter Obi and other opposition leaders to close ranks and present a formidable candidate against Tinubu, rather than the current fragmentation in the opposition landscape.  

Read Also: 2027 may become coronation, not election, if opposition remains divided — Lukman

Speaking on Arise News Morning Show monitored in Abuja on Friday, Lukman, now a founding chieftain of the opposition African Democratic Congress ADC expressed deep concern that opposition leaders are repeating the precise missteps that fractured their ranks ahead of the 2023 polls, rather than building a united, formidable front to challenge the incumbent administration.

Reacting to the recent Court of Appeal judgment in Abuja, which nullified an earlier High Court order instructing the Independent National Electoral Commission to deregister the ADC and four other political parties, Lukman noted that legal triumphs mean little without genuine political cohesion.

“As a Nigerian, I am not excited by all this development because if you recall, as an advocate of the coalition and the unity of the opposition leaders when we started about two years ago, the objectives were basically two: to get the opposition leaders united and to also factor the need to build a party that can hold elected leaders accountable,” Lukman stated. “As it is today, I think no matter what comes out of the judicial process, we can have a party that can contest the election, but I see us going back to 2023, repeating almost the same things that happened in 2023 and expecting a miracle to happen.”

He expressed dismay over the current state of governance in the country under the APC, lamenting that the lack of a strong opposition leaves citizens without viable choices.

“We are all troubled by the fact that here we are boxed with an APC government and an elected leadership that is hardly accountable, and by the day, by the hour, things keep getting worse,” he said. “The hope and expectation is that election will produce competition on the basis of which better new leadership can emerge. So far as a nation, it seems we are not approaching that at all, and in the 2027 election, we may end up mismanaging ourselves as an opposition.”

Lukman challenged key opposition figures to prioritize the nation’s survival over their individual presidential ambitions, questioning whether self-interest has completely overshadowed national interest.

“We must pose a question: is the personal ambition of leaders in the opposition far more important than the destiny of rescuing the country? Are the opposition leaders unable to approach this challenge with the need to make personal sacrifices in such a way that they can be united and we can confront this election?.  

“Look, as a person, I don’t have any restraint; I want APC and President Tinubu defeated out of government in 2027, but the way we are going about it, I am frustrated, I must be honest”, he declared.  

Revealing his own political stance, Lukman disclosed that his dissatisfaction with the trajectory of opposition politics compelled him to suspend his membership in the ADC weeks ago to engage in broader consultations across party lines.

“About two weeks ago, out of frustration, I announced the suspension of my membership because, look, we are faced with a serious challenge. Partisan affiliation will not get us out of this mess that we are facing now.

“Part of the arrogance and the audacity of APC leaders and President Tinubu is also the weakness of the opposition, which is why although things are hard, they keep saying the government is achieving a lot when there is nothing to show”, he said.  

He noted that consultation efforts are already underway among patriotic political actors to compel opposition figures back to the negotiating table before the 2027 election cycle gathers full momentum.

“Part of the difficulty in even managing them is because the opposition is not united. The same way the opposition contested the 2023 election, they want to contest the 2027 election and get a different result,” he stated. “Let’s not deceive ourselves; let’s not deceive Nigerians. Many of us as politicians and patriotic Nigerians are committed to starting a new run of engagement with the aim of forcing the opposition leadership to come back to the negotiation table and negotiate a deal that is not about their personal ambition. This country is bigger than all of them.”

Addressing debate regarding regional zoning arrangements, Lukman insisted that the focus must remain on competence, accountability, and systemic reforms rather than ethnic or regional sentiment.

“Whether you bring somebody from the South who is unaccountable, it is not going to please me,” Lukman stressed. “So long as they will present a better form of leadership, be accountable to citizens who elect them, and have some kind of listening ear, I will support that.”

On electoral administration, Lukman observed that credibility cannot be declared by executive fiat but must be demonstrated through the actions of the electoral umpire on election day. He also called for a demilitarized electoral process akin to other West African democracies.

“The mere fact that President Tinubu will be the one giving testimony about the neutrality of INEC highlights some problems,” he noted. “INEC should be the one to prove to Nigerians that they are neutral, and neutrality is not something you go searching for; everybody on the field can see whether they are neutral or not.”

He added, “In neighboring countries as close as Ghana, you see elections taking place almost like any normal business. You hardly hear of a total shutdown of the country. Until we get to the point where an election is a civic responsibility and citizens exercise it without much restraint or bazaar, whether military is present or police is present, we cannot truly celebrate our elections.” 

Later in the day, Lukman was on Channels to send the same message to the opposition parties. Said he:

“I would say that 2027 will be more of a coronation than an election. The pain every Nigerian is going through is that Nigeria is not changing for the better,” he said.

According to him, Nigerians do not need opinion polls to assess the performance of the current administration because the economic hardship being experienced across the country is evident in people’s daily lives.

“You don’t need a poll to know Nigerians are suffering. The reality is reflected in the daily lives of citizens. People are struggling and the economy is becoming more difficult,” he stated.

Lukman disclosed that discussions on building a broad opposition coalition had lasted for nearly two years but regretted that the process had failed to produce the united platform many Nigerians expected. He argued that the inability of opposition leaders to close ranks had emboldened the ruling party.

“The arrogance of the APC today is largely because the opposition has failed to present a united front capable of challenging the ruling party. We have practically gone back to where we were in 2023,” he said.

He warned that if opposition parties remained divided, voter apathy could increase significantly, making the electoral process more vulnerable to manipulation.

“Confidence in the electoral process is already low. If people begin to believe the outcome is predetermined, voter apathy will increase and the election may simply become a coronation,” he added.

Reflecting on his role in the formation of the APC in 2013, Lukman admitted that the party had drifted from the progressive ideals on which it was founded. “We wanted a progressive party that would transform Nigeria, but over time the party degenerated. Many of us appealed to its leaders to return to those ideals, but nothing changed,” he said.

He also criticised the implementation of key economic reforms, including the removal of fuel subsidy and exchange rate liberalisation, arguing that they were introduced without adequate measures to cushion their effects on citizens.

According to him, rising inflation, high food prices and declining agricultural productivity show that many Nigerians are yet to benefit from the reforms being championed by the Federal Government.

Lukman, however, insisted that the responsibility for changing the political landscape rests largely with the opposition. He urged opposition leaders to put national interest ahead of personal ambition by negotiating and rallying behind a single presidential candidate capable of offering Nigerians a credible alternative.

“My appeal is simple. Opposition leaders must prove that they love Nigeria more than their personal ambitions. They should negotiate, unite and present one credible candidate Nigerians can rally behind in 2027,” he said.