APC Not Behind Opposition Crises, Says Basiru

The National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Ajibola Basiru, has dismissed allegations that the ruling party is responsible for internal crises rocking opposition parties, particularly the African Democratic Congress.

Basiru made the remarks during a media chat on Arise News on Wednesday night, where he defended the APC against claims that it is undermining democracy and manipulating institutions to weaken opposition parties.

Responding to the allegation, he said, “So, if you want to talk about Nigerians actually speaking, you can only be talking of members of the APC, and be speaking as a collective. You cannot be relying on what I call cacophony of some individuals who speak out of emotion, without any facts, and add facts in order to support this. Today, we are in government, we must respect institutions of democracy.”

He warned against making unsubstantiated claims about the state of democracy and the role of the judiciary.

“You cannot cast aspersion on the issue of democracy without hard facts and hard evidence. To cast aspersion on the judiciary, being in cahoots with our party, is not edifying for the country, and it’s not edifying for the issue of democracy.”

The APC scribe maintained that democratic freedoms remain intact in Nigeria, citing media criticism of the government as evidence.

“One of the hallmarks of democratic governance is heterogeneity of ideas, and ability for people to speak freely, without fear… And today, perhaps Nigeria has the largest number of independent media administration in the world. Every morning, we read editorials critical of our government. Every day we have talk shows critical of our government.”

Basiru further argued that the presence of multiple political parties contradicts claims that the APC is stifling opposition.

“As at the last count, we have no less than 19 registered political parties in Nigeria. The political parties that are claiming that they have a problem, they are not up to four or five. So, majority of Nigerian political parties don’t have any problems,” he added.

He questioned assertions linking the APC to internal disputes in opposition parties.

“If you say APC is the source of the problem, have you seen any APC member challenging the internal processes of other political parties?”
Basiru also referenced recent court rulings, including decisions by the Supreme Court of Nigeria, to argue that internal party crises are being handled within the framework of the law.

“I will give today, Supreme Court of Nigeria that sat today… rejected application… and said status quo ante bellum should be maintained… And yet, some people still gather themselves… and say that they’re organizing convention, which is clearly in violation of the law.”

He dismissed suggestions that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu or the APC is influencing internal opposition matters.

“Is it President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that is telling them to violate and act contrary to the express position of the Court of Appeals…?”

Basiru added that similar legal disputes exist within other parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party, noting that such issues are internal and subject to judicial resolution.

“The faction of Peoples Democratic Party… appeared at the Supreme Court too, and Supreme Court refused to grant them stay of execution… and granted accelerated hearing for their proceedings.”

He concluded that Nigeria’s democracy remains functional and rooted in the rule of law, urging political actors to address internal challenges within legal frameworks rather than apportion blame.