The All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed claims that the ruling party is trying to turn the country into a one-party state.
National Publicity Secretary of the party, Felix Morka, dismissed the claims on Tuesday while speaking on Channels Television.
Morka said the APC has no intention of eliminating opposition parties, stressing that a strong opposition is healthy for democracy.
“There is no such desire, let alone intent to turn Nigeria into one party state. The APC is the ruling party, which was elected in the last general elections. Therefore, the party is in government.
“What we have witnessed is individuals who have made decisions that are permissible in a democracy to move from their platforms to join our party,” he said.
Morka’s comments come amid growing concerns that the country is drifting towards a one-party system following the steady loss of members from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other opposition parties.
Several governors, lawmakers and other prominent politicians have defected to the APC in recent months. However, Morka said such movements are not unusual in a democratic system.
“That is nothing unusual, nothing untoward. People joke around with this spectre of a one-party state; we shouldn’t.
“If you understand the constitutional and legal process that creates the democratic framework that we operate, you will know that it is not something that you wish.
“Even if anyone in the APC wished for a one-party state, it is virtually impossible under the prevailing constitutional legal framework to enact a one-party state.
“A one-party state doesn’t come by wishful thinking or by people being mischievous. What you are seeing is just the play of democracy.
“We all love democracy. When democracy plays the hard game, we begin to suspect democracy that democracy is transmogrifying,” Morka added.