Bode George, APC Clash Over Suppression of Opposition in Nigeria

…George to INEC: “Miracle Results, Technical Glitches Must Stop”

By Yinka Giwa
A sharp exchange over the role of opposition politics in Nigeria emerged on Monday between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and a senior leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, highlighting contrasting views on democratic practice as the country approaches the 2026 political season.

The APC, through its Lagos State spokesman, Mr Seye Oladejo, called on opposition parties and critics of President Bola Tinubu to embrace what it described as a contest of ideas, arguing that democracy cannot thrive on grievance-driven politics. The party’s position was set out in a statement issued in Lagos.

“Democracy flourishes on the contest of ideas, not on the circus of bitterness,” Oladejo said, adding that “an opposition that survives solely on obstruction, incitement and grievance merchandising does not strengthen democracy; it pollutes it.”

According to the APC spokesman, Nigeria deserves critics who offer ideas and policy alternatives rather than what he described as “professional complainers who mistake noise for relevance.” He said the party had observed that the opposition remained divided and lacking in credible policy direction despite repeated electoral opportunities.

Oladejo further said that repeated rejection of electoral outcomes and the portrayal of accountability processes as persecution were inconsistent with democratic norms. “In any serious democracy, criminal allegations are not acts of witch-hunt, and courtrooms are not theatres for political melodrama,” he stated.

The APC also urged opposition parties to address internal challenges rather than blame institutions or external forces, and called for consistency in condemning terrorism, criminality and violence. Oladejo cautioned against rhetoric portraying Nigeria as a failed state, insisting that the country was undergoing difficult but necessary reforms under the administration of President Tinubu.

In a contrasting response issued the same day, former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Olabode George, rejected any attempt to diminish the role of opposition in a democratic system, warning that democracy without a viable opposition was “a dictatorship in disguise.”

“Democracy thrives on a plurality of ideas, not the silence of the graveyard,” George said, while expressing concern over what he described as growing intolerance of dissenting political voices.

George cited reports of harassment involving Governors Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, describing them as threats to Nigeria’s federal structure. “The harassment of these governors is not a mere political skirmish; it is a calculated assault on federalism,” he said.

According to the PDP leader, intimidation of elected state executives for holding opposing views could signal a drift toward authoritarianism. He warned that policies perceived as weakening opposition parties could undermine democratic institutions and erode public trust.

George also called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to uphold fairness and transparency in future elections, saying the credibility of the democratic process depended on credible electoral outcomes. “The era of miracle results and technical glitches must end,” he said.

On economic policy, George cautioned the Federal Government against imposing taxes that could stifle businesses and worsen hardship for citizens. He cited Venezuela as an example of how economic pressure combined with suppression of opposition could destabilise even resource-rich nations.