The Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Prince Adewole Adebayo, has dismissed fears that Nigeria could become a one-party state despite the increasing defections to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
As reported by The Guardian, Adebayo argued that Nigeria’s deep structural and social diversity makes the idea of a single-party system unrealistic.
“There’s no one system of employment. There’s no one system of security,” he stated.
He further criticised the self-serving nature of many politicians who switch parties in pursuit of benefits, asserting that such figures cannot claim alignment with the struggles of everyday Nigerians.
“The benefits of politics are flowing in the direction of politicians, and a welfare politician changing from party to party cannot say he’s in the same coalition with the poor—who cannot pay their children’s school fees, who cannot sleep well at home, and who cannot keep a job,” he said.
Adebayo stressed that despite concerns about the increasing dominance of the APC through defections, the stark gap between the elite and the common people inherently prevents the emergence of a singular political voice.
“How can people who are standing in the rain waiting for a car to carry them be a one-party system with those who are using multiple private jets paid for by the public? It is not possible,” he added.
He maintained that defections alone cannot dismantle Nigeria’s multi-party democracy, as the electorate retains the power to replace leaders regardless of party affiliation.
“If all the governors go to one party, Nigeria will choose a new set of governors. If all the senators go to one party, Nigeria will choose another set of senators,” Adebayo affirmed.
He pointed out that a true one-party state only emerges where legal mechanisms prevent the formation of other political parties.
“What makes a one-party state is when people think that they don’t need any other party outside the one that is ruling, or when people are being forced by law not to create another party,” he said.
Highlighting the constitutional freedom to form new political parties, Adebayo underscored that ideology, not numbers, sustains any political movement.
“In Nigeria, you can create as many parties as you want, but what is going to sustain the party is whether the members of the party believe in that party,” he stated.
“That’s what we’ve been trying to work on since we started leading the SDP—to make sure that only those who believe in the party join the party.”
He concluded by reaffirming that Nigeria’s wide-ranging political and ideological differences make the establishment of a one-party system highly improbable.