Salihu Lukman warns APC is ‘becoming a monarchy,’ reveals plans for 2027 opposition coalition

Salihu Lukman, former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has raised alarm over what he described as the party’s alarming shift from its founding progressive ideals toward autocracy, warning that internal democracy has all but collapsed.

Speaking on The Morning Brief, a Channels Television programme, on Friday, Lukman said the ruling party now operates more like a monarchy than a democratic institution. He expressed dismay at what he called a culture of automatic endorsements and the systematic sidelining of internal electoral processes.

“The APC has moved from a party envisioned to be progressive to almost a monarchy,” Lukman said. “As it is now, the APC mantra is that there will be no internal contest in 2027 — the president is adopted. All their governors are adopted. Legislators are also adopted.”

For Lukman, this signals not only a betrayal of the party’s founding principles, but a serious threat to democratic accountability.

“Any party whose elected representatives are not accountable is not a party in the classical sense,” he added.

Lukman also revealed that advanced negotiations are ongoing to form a new opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections. According to him, the movement has been in quiet development for over a year, with efforts focused on building a credible platform that can challenge the political status quo.

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“There is nothing stopping the coalition from coming to fruition,” he said. “We are going through a painstaking process and very soon, we are going to come out and clarify all the details in terms of how we are going to contest the 2027 elections and the leaders of the coalition.”

Lukman noted that the coalition may either restructure an existing political platform or give birth to a brand new party. He emphasized that the focus is not merely on capturing power, but on redefining Nigeria’s political culture by instituting real internal democracy, constitutional reform, and transparent candidate selection.

“We want to present to Nigerians a new reality that addresses all the frustrations,” he said. “We want to ensure that internally, winners emerge through contests, and when people win elections, they are accountable to the party.”

Lukman’s comments come in the wake of the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) formally endorsing President Bola Tinubu as the APC’s sole presidential candidate for the 2027 election.

Imo State Governor and PGF Chairman, Hope Uzodimma, made the announcement during a summit organized by the APC. Senate President Godswill Akpabio also declared that Tinubu should not only be the sole candidate of the APC, but also the singular choice of the nation for the presidency.

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