President Tinubu urges PDP and Labour Party to resolve internal divisions, saying a strong opposition is vital for democracy, according to Akpabio
Opposition party crisis is a source of deep concern for President Bola Tinubu, according to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who disclosed the president’s stance at a major infrastructure inauguration in Abuja.
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Tinubu, he said, is disheartened by the ongoing internal divisions within both the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP).
Akpabio, speaking on behalf of the president at the commissioning of the Arterial Road N20 Interchange Bridges, called on the leading opposition parties to put their houses in order.
He referenced the PDP’s prolonged leadership tussle and the LP’s own cracks, including the recent defection of Senator Neda Imasuen to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“However you people got yourself into this confusion, try and get yourself out of it very quickly.
President Bola Tinubu GCFR is interested in seeing a vibrant opposition,” Akpabio stated. “It saddens him when he sees the way the opposition in Nigeria is in disarray.”
Akpabio revealed that even before attending the event, he had received a letter from the Labour Party, suggesting more internal issues within its ranks.
He questioned the credibility of a party that hopes to govern a complex nation but struggles with internal organisation.
Senator Imasuen’s defection from LP to APC was acknowledged by Akpabio, who expressed delight at the development, saying the APC remains open to new members.
“Congratulations to Imasuen, who has decided to leave the fractured Labour Party to join the APC,” he said.
Meanwhile, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, criticised the PDP’s delay in reinstating Samuel Anyanwu as National Secretary despite a Supreme Court verdict.
Addressing Umar Damagum, the party’s acting chairman, Wike reminded him that legal ignorance does not justify procedural errors.
“The National Secretary is not your appointee. If it’s because of your ignorance of the law, too bad. The law does not recognise ignorance,” Wike stated firmly.
He advised Damagum to seek guidance rather than act out of ego, saying, “Continue to shoot yourself. I will not be a party of those who will shoot themselves.”
Wike also linked Tinubu’s leadership to recent achievements in the FCT, asserting that these successes would shape the 2026 Area Councils’ Elections.
He noted that the president had personally commissioned several projects, while delegating senior officials for others.
“Because of the directive of you, Mr President, that every project that will have positive impact on the lives and economy of our people must be given priority attention, that is why today… we took it upon ourselves to see that these projects are completed,” Wike said.
He highlighted his own rigorous oversight of the projects and praised Gilmor Engineering Services for their consistent performance.
Wike dismissed suggestions that past administrations deserved credit for the developments now being commissioned.
“If you know, for the past few years, from 2010 to 2023, there are projects we are commissioning that you say you had finished, please do us a favour by coming out to say these projects, we started it, we finished it,” he challenged critics.
Also read: Akpabio Hails Tinubu for Signing Bills Establishing Tertiary Institutions in South East
Wike concluded by pointing to evidence on the ground. “This is not 3D. This is not what we will do. This is what we have done.”
