Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of orchestrating a “systematic assault” on Nigeria’s democratic institutions, warning that recent political crises reveal a coordinated strategy to weaken opposition before the 2027 elections.
The PDP in the 2023 elections pointed to three simultaneous political fires as evidence of democratic backsliding: the recently-resolved sealing of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s office, the ongoing constitutional crisis in Rivers State, and what he termed “state-sponsored harassment” of opposition figures in Northern states.
“These are not isolated incidents,” Atiku declared via his X account. “They are deliberate markers of the Tinubu administration’s strategy as 2027 approaches: to subvert our hard-earned democracy and compromise the will of the people at any cost.”
While acknowledging the reopening of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s office, Atiku emphasized that the initial closure had effectively disenfranchised Kogi Central constituents for months. He connected this to the suspension of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara and certain assembly members, describing both situations as unconstitutional power plays.
The former Vice President specifically highlighted recent reports of disrupted opposition events in Kaduna and Katsina, including an incident involving former Governor Nasir el-Rufai, as examples of escalating tactics against political opponents.
According to Atiku, these developments are part of a broader pattern that threatens to reverse Nigeria’s democratic gains since 1999.
“Let it be clear: on our part, we shall do everything legitimate and within the bounds of the law to protect our democracy, defend the sovereignty of the people’s mandate, and rescue our nation from the grip of authoritarianism,” he asserted.
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