{VIEWPOINT} Why Tinubu-led APC, FG Must Follow Buhari’s Example on Voting for Candidates of Choice Across Parties
MAIN POINTS:
*Buhari’s Example and the Democratic Principle
*Tinubu and the APC Must Recognise the People’s Sovereignty
*The Federal Government Must Remain a Government for All Nigerians
*Political Loyalty Should Not Override Voters’ Freedom
*The 2027 Elections Must Be About Choice, Not Compulsion
*Let the People Decide
By ABANIKANDA OLUMORO (UK)
In 2027, Nigerians should be free to vote for the candidates they believe can best represent them, across party lines, without intimidation or undue pressure. The duty of political leaders is to persuade the electorate, not to claim ownership of its choices.
Nigeria’s democracy will be better served when political leaders recognise that the right to vote belongs to the people and that membership of a political party does not automatically translate into an obligation to support every candidate fielded by that party. This principle deserves renewed attention as the country approaches another crucial electoral cycle in 2027.
The administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Federal Government of Nigeria have an opportunity to demonstrate that democratic maturity requires respect for the freedom of citizens to choose their representatives across party lines.
There is a relevant precedent in the conduct of former President Muhammadu Buhari during the 2019 general elections. At different campaign rallies, Buhari acknowledged the right of Nigerians to support candidates of their choice, even when their preferences for particular offices did not align with the APC’s candidates.
His position offers an important lesson for the Tinubu-led government: political loyalty and democratic freedom need not be mutually exclusive.
The question is not whether the APC should campaign for its candidates. It has every right to do so. The question is whether the ruling party and the government it controls can defend the same democratic freedom for citizens who choose candidates from other parties.
Buhari’s Example and the Democratic Principle
During the 2019 election campaign, Buhari made remarks that attracted attention because they appeared to give voters room to exercise independent judgment beyond party affiliation.
At an APC presidential campaign rally in Owerri, Imo State, in January 2019, he urged residents to vote for candidates of their choice. His comments came amid disagreements within the state’s APC over its governorship candidacy.
The episode demonstrated the complications that arise when party interests, local political alliances and citizens’ preferences do not necessarily coincide.
The Presidency subsequently explained that Buhari had addressed a crowd whose members supported him for president but held different preferences for other elective positions. The explanation acknowledged the reality of Nigeria’s multiparty democracy: voters can support a presidential candidate from one party and a governorship or legislative candidate from another.
Similarly, ahead of the March 2019 supplementary elections, Buhari stated that voters should support candidates they believed would deliver on their promises because doing so was their constitutionally guaranteed democratic right. He also declared that he would not pressure voters to elect leaders they did not like.
These positions were reported in official statements and contemporary news accounts.
The significance of this precedent lies in the principle it expresses. Although Buhari was the leader of the APC-led Federal Government, he acknowledged that the electorate’s constitutional rights could not be subordinated entirely to the interests of the governing party.
That is a principle worth preserving, regardless of who occupies the presidency.
Tinubu and the APC Must Recognise the People’s Sovereignty
President Tinubu and the APC are entitled to seek electoral support for their candidates in 2027. They can present their records, explain their policies, defend their decisions and persuade Nigerians that their candidates deserve another opportunity to govern.
However, the right to campaign does not confer ownership of the electorate.
Nigerians who voted for Tinubu in the presidential election may decide to support an opposition candidate for governor, senator, member of the House of Representatives or member of a state assembly. Equally, a citizen who supports an opposition presidential candidate may prefer an APC candidate for another office.
Such choices are not necessarily contradictions. They may reflect a voter’s assessment of the individual candidates, their records, their programmes and their capacity to address local problems.
A farmer may favour one candidate because of agricultural policies. A trader may prefer another because of the person’s approach to taxation and market development. A young graduate may assess candidates according to their employment proposals, while a resident of a particular community may prioritise security, roads, schools and healthcare.
Democracy provides room for these different considerations.
The APC should therefore resist the temptation to interpret every vote for an opposition candidate as hostility towards the president or the Federal Government. Likewise, it should not assume that a voter who supports Tinubu must automatically support every APC candidate on the ballot.
The electorate is made up of individuals with different experiences, expectations and political judgments.
The strength of a democracy lies partly in its ability to accommodate those differences peacefully.
The Federal Government Must Remain a Government for All Nigerians
A governing party and the government it controls are related, but they are not identical.
The APC is a political organisation seeking to win elections and implement its programme. The Federal Government, on the other hand, exercises public authority on behalf of the Nigerian state and is responsible for serving citizens regardless of their political affiliations.
This distinction is essential.
Once an election is concluded and a government assumes office, its responsibilities extend beyond the party members and supporters who helped bring it to power. Citizens who voted for opposition parties remain entitled to public services, equal protection under the law and access to legitimate government programmes.
The same principle should guide the conduct of public officials during elections.
Federal resources, public institutions and the authority of government should not be used to punish citizens for supporting opposition candidates. Nor should political disagreements become grounds for denying communities their rights or treating certain voters as less deserving of public attention.
Respect for political choice must be accompanied by impartial administration, lawful conduct and the protection of citizens’ freedoms.
Buhari’s assurance in March 2019 that he was prepared to work with elected representatives regardless of the parties on whose platforms they emerged offered an expression of this principle.
For the Tinubu administration, the lesson is straightforward: the government must be able to work with elected representatives from different political parties in the national interest.
Nigeria’s problems do not stop at party boundaries. Insecurity, unemployment, poverty, inadequate infrastructure and the cost of living affect citizens across political divisions.
Addressing these challenges requires cooperation among elected officials, even when they disagree over party platforms or policy choices.
Political Loyalty Should Not Override Voters’ Freedom
One of the recurring challenges in Nigerian politics is the tendency to treat party loyalty as an absolute obligation.
Party leaders understandably expect their members to support official candidates. Political parties exist partly to organise political interests, develop programmes and contest elections. Their members may also have legitimate reasons to campaign for their party’s candidates.
Nevertheless, political loyalty should not become a justification for denying citizens their freedom of choice.
The ballot belongs to the voter.
A political party may persuade its members to support its candidates, but persuasion differs fundamentally from coercion. Citizens should be free to evaluate the available candidates and decide who deserves their votes without intimidation, threats or improper pressure.
This distinction becomes particularly important when internal party disputes arise.
Where a party’s candidate is unpopular with some members, those members may choose to support another candidate. Whether such conduct has consequences under a party’s internal rules is a separate question from the constitutional freedom of eligible voters to choose among candidates on the ballot.
Political leaders must understand that the electorate is not a captive audience.
In a competitive democracy, public support must continually be earned. It cannot be secured merely by invoking party identity or demanding unquestioning loyalty.
For Tinubu and the APC, this means allowing citizens to assess candidates independently while making the strongest possible case for their own candidates through peaceful, issue-based campaigning.
The 2027 Elections Must Be About Choice, Not Compulsion
As political activities intensify ahead of 2027, Nigeria needs a climate in which competing parties can campaign freely and citizens can make their choices without fear.
The APC, as the governing party, has a responsibility to demonstrate confidence in democratic competition. It should present its candidates, explain its achievements and shortcomings, and persuade voters through credible arguments.
Opposition parties must enjoy the same lawful opportunity to present their alternatives.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and relevant security agencies also have important responsibilities. They must operate within their legal mandates, protect the electoral process and respond appropriately to intimidation, violence and other violations of electoral law.
Political leaders, meanwhile, should discourage supporters from treating opponents as enemies of the state.
A vote for an opposition candidate is not, by itself, an act of disloyalty to Nigeria. Nor is support for an APC candidate proof that a voter endorses every decision of the Federal Government.
Citizens should be able to distinguish between their national identity, their personal political convictions and their assessments of individual candidates.
This freedom is central to meaningful electoral participation.
The 2027 elections should therefore provide an opportunity for all parties to demonstrate that they believe in the electorate’s right to make independent choices.
Conclusion: Let the People Decide
The central lesson from Buhari’s 2019 statements is that a president can lead a political party while recognising that voters retain the right to make their own choices across party lines.
That principle should not depend on the personality of the president or the political circumstances of a particular election. It should be a consistent feature of democratic governance.
Tinubu, the APC and the Federal Government have a legitimate interest in the party’s electoral success. But that interest must operate within the broader framework of constitutional democracy, where the people—not political parties—ultimately determine who occupies elective office.
The ruling party should campaign vigorously for its candidates, but it should also respect citizens who choose differently. The Federal Government should protect the rights of all Nigerians, regardless of how they vote. And political leaders should recognise that elected representatives from other parties can contribute meaningfully to national development.
Buhari’s example offers a useful point of reference, not because every action of his administration must be replicated, but because respect for voters’ freedom is a principle that transcends administrations and parties.
Ultimately, democracy is not measured only by the number of votes a ruling party receives. It is also measured by whether citizens can cast their ballots freely, whether their choices are respected and whether government serves the entire country after the votes have been counted.
In 2027, Nigerians should be free to vote for the candidates they believe can best represent them, across party lines, without intimidation or undue pressure. The duty of political leaders is to persuade the electorate, not to claim ownership of its choices.
Olumoro, a Nigerian in the Diaspora, writes from the United Kingdom.
DISCLAIMER: Note that all opinions expressed in this article are entirely those of the author and not of The DEFENDER Newspaper.
