According to Salihu Lukman, the former National Vice Chairman (Northwest) of the All Progressives Congress, the ruling party has totally strayed from its original ideals and is now functioning more like a monarchy than a democratic organization.
During an interview on Arise News on Wednesday, Lukman—who left the APC in 2023, citing a betrayal of democratic values—made the comments while considering Muhammadu Buhari’s legacy, the internal disintegration of the APC, and his idea for a new political alliance.
In honoring the late former president Buhari, Lukman characterized him as a paradoxical individual, pointing out that his greatest asset—non-intervention—was also his greatest weakness.
According to Lukman, “the paradox of the late President Buhari is that his weakness is his strength.” His weakness was his non-interventionist mindset, which allowed him to put up with nearly everything that happened around him.
“It seemed to be his strength, but it turned out to be the greater challenge.”
He contended that under Buhari’s leadership, the party structure deteriorated and decisive leadership was impeded by his accommodating style.
“The freedom that President Buhari granted all leaders to grow the party was not available to us while he was in office. Rather, he stated, “the party was sacrificed.”
According to Lukman, the APC has lost the internal checks and balances that once made it a party of promise and has regressed into a shadow of its former self.
He bemoaned the fact that the APC had gone from being a party with many promises to essentially being a party that was acting as a midwife and more or less serving its organ.
Instead of serving as a watchdog or strategic advisor, he charged the party with becoming little more than a cheerleader for elected officials.
We could as well have a monarchy, Lukman cautioned, “when a party reduces itself to almost like a cheerleader, singing praises of elected representatives.”
The current APC, according to Lukman, is a hollow organization where important party organs are no longer in operation and important decisions are made without consulting anyone.
“Most state governments don’t meet as executive councils. “The party organs aren’t working,” he stated.
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“The party is unable to self-correct or meaningfully evaluate its performance in government due to the collapse of internal democracy,” he continued.
Regarding the recent resignation of APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje, Lukman stated that the result was unavoidable because internal agreements had been continuously violated.
“Once you undermine agreement within the party, you make yourself vulnerable,” he said, implying that Ganduje’s leadership further damaged trust in the party’s structure and alienated important stakeholders.
Lukman said that since leaving the APC, his attention is now on forming a new coalition that values democracy and stays away from the strongman mentality.
He asserted that greater humility among leaders might be a better basis for democratic development, saying, “We don’t have somebody with the kind of intimidating profile as that of late President Buhari in the coalition.”
Lukman went on to say, “All coalition leaders must be humble and recognize their mutual dependence.”
He emphasised that the objective was to create a “fresh political template” that truly reflects the ambitions of Nigerians, not just to overthrow the APC or President Tinubu.
In his conclusion, Lukman argued for accountability, internal democracy, and group decision-making—qualities he feels have been lost in the APC’s recent development.
