“It’s regrettable, indeed very sad and unfortunate, that when you begin to trace the genesis of those crises, they will take you back to the footsteps of the party in government.”
Kabiru Turaki, the factional chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has accused President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of fuelling divisions across major opposition parties.
Mr Turaki, a former minister of Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Affairs, said the leadership crises in the PDP and other opposition parties could be traced to the ruling party.
He spoke on Thursday at a stakeholders’ meeting organised by the Interim National Working Committee of his faction in Abuja.
“Today, we are witnessing in Nigeria a time that is different from what we all are used to seeing. There is a lot of tension. There are a lot of crises. There are a lot of upheavals in the domain of most of the opposition political parties.
“It’s regrettable, indeed very sad and unfortunate, that when you begin to trace the genesis of those crises, they will take you back to the footsteps of the party in government,” he said.
Mr Turaki said those in government should ordinarily promote peaceful political competition rather than instigate crises within opposition parties.
“We used to think that more than any other person, that people in government, people who are on the surgeon of leadership, should prefer peace to reign rather than crisis in their domain,” he added.
He expressed confidence that, despite its leadership crisis, the PDP would survive and participate in the 2027 general elections.
“But for us in PDP, while other political parties are having existential threats, while their existence is threatened, while their lives are shaking, nobody, and I dare say, nobody can kill the PDP. PDP will continue to live. There may be challenges here and there regarding the leadership of our party. Again, for us in PDP, this is nothing new. We will overcome. We shall overcome. We are overcoming,” he said.
Mr Turaki’s allegation comes amid prolonged leadership crises in several opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections. The party remains divided between rival factions over its national leadership, while the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has also been embroiled in internal disputes and disagreements over the party’s leadership structure.
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has similarly faced factional battles and legal disputes over the control of the party. The internal crises have fuelled accusations by opposition figures that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is exploiting or encouraging the divisions to weaken its rivals before the next election.
The APC, however, has repeatedly debunked the allegations, insisting that the crises within the opposition are self-inflicted. Senior APC officials, including the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, have on several occasions said the ruling party has no role in the internal affairs of opposition parties, stating that their leadership disputes originated from internal disagreements rather than external interference.
Mr Turaki also reacted to last week’s judgement of the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissing his faction’s suit seeking to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise it and publish its candidates on the commission’s portal.
The suit was filed by the PDP Board of Trustees led by former Senate President Adolphus Wabara.
The judge, Salim Ibrahim, held that the plaintiff lacked the legal standing to institute the suit and dismissed the case for lacking merit.
Responding to the judgment, Mr Turaki said leaders of his faction would review the decision at a private meeting before issuing an official position.
He nevertheless insisted that the PDP would be on the ballot in the 2027 general elections. However, he did not clarify which faction would field candidates, given that INEC has recognised the rival faction led by Abdulrahman Mohammed, and backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
“But I want to say, without fear of contradiction, that PDP, your party, is on course. The essence of every political party is to legitimately capture power in a given polity. You cannot capture power unless you are on the ballot. I want to tell you that PDP shall be on the ballot for all rounds of the 2027 elections, from the presidential down to the state houses of assembly election. PDP, this PDP shall be on the ballot,” he assured.
