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The All Progressives Congress (APC) has challenged opposition parties over their election complaints, urging them to examine their internal failures.
APC representative Abdulkarim Abubakar made the statement on Thursday during News Central TV’s National Chairmen’s Dialogue, themed: The 2027 Question: What Will It Take To Get Election Right?”
Abubakar said some opposition parties that won elections under an APC government in 2015 later lost members and supporters because of internal problems.
“That is not the doing of the APC. Unfortunately, there is a failing, the failing of those opposition parties themselves,” he said.
He urged political parties to look beyond blaming the ruling party and assess their own shortcomings.
“So while we point one finger at the ruling party, if you look carefully at that hand, you will see that four other fingers are pointing back at us.”
“And if we want to play, let’s play fair. And the way to play fair is to also look at things positively,” Abubakar said.
The APC representative also defended the government’s preparations for the 2027 election, saying relevant agencies had not raised concerns about the resources needed to conduct the poll.
“As we speak, like I have mentioned, INEC is not complaining; they have not received what is needed and necessary to conduct a fair and fair election, they are not complaining.”
“The security agencies are not complaining. None of the agencies needed in the process is complaining,” he said.
According to Abubakar, this shows that the ruling party is putting measures in place to give Nigerians and political parties access to the electoral process.
“In other words, the ruling party has done what it needs to do to ensure that everything is put in place for everyone to have access and opportunity to cast his vote in 2027, and for all the political parties to be able to win,” he said.
He cited recent elections where the APC lost seats as evidence that the ruling party does not automatically control electoral outcomes.
“We have seen how the ruling party lost elections in critical seats where it is already a majority earlier, before the 2027 elections,” he said.
He also referred to recent off-cycle elections where the APC lost despite being the ruling party.
Abubakar criticised what he described as inconsistent reactions to election results, saying some parties accept elections as credible only when they win.
“I think we should look at things more positively, such that, or not only when the APC wins or loses, before we see it’s a free and fair election,” he said.
He cited the Osun election and a Bayelsa election as examples of situations where the APC accepted electoral losses.
“The election in Osun was a clear example. Election in Bayelsa last year was also a clear example. We lost in Bayelsa, and we have lost so many other seats, even under our ruling party,” he said.
Abubakar said the APC would continue working to ensure Nigerians can participate in the 2027 electoral process.
“Ours as a party, we can assure all Nigerians, we are making sure that all Nigerians have access to the process, all Nigerians participate in the process, so that we can have a successful 2027 elections,” he said.
He added that the APC was also focused on improving Nigeria’s economy and strengthening national security.
“When we get to a point where we will lay bare the scorecard and performance of our party, I’m sure we will do that,” Abubakar said.
He also said the town hall would give the ruling party a chance to highlight its achievements to Nigerians.
