Boniface Aniebonam, the founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), argued that the recent wave of defections to the APC is a matter of voluntary personal choice, not coercion by President Bola Tinubu. Speaking in Lagos, he noted that no politician is joining the APC “at gunpoint,” and that membership in any of the country’s 18 registered political parties remains a personal right.
Aniebonam dismissed claims that President Tinubu is trying to establish a one-party state, saying that even if all opposition governors join the APC, it would not invalidate Nigeria’s multi-party system, especially since INEC has not deregistered any existing parties. He asserted that the APC and the President have the right to seek more members for re-election.
The NNPP leader further suggested that many defecting governors are underperforming in their states and may be joining the APC in a calculated move to secure a “second opportunity” or “cover from investigation.” He cautioned the APC to be wary of these mass defections, warning that it is “easier to fight from within than from outside.” Aniebonam advised Nigerians to be more politically conscious, noting that the voting public is far larger than the minority of defecting politicians. Finally, he urged the EFCC to keep state governments under scrutiny and ensure that any governor found to have embezzled state funds is investigated and prosecuted “at the appropriate time.”
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