Tinubu never won the 2023 election and everybody knows it – Senator Abaribe

Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, who represents Abia South Senatorial District, has said President Bola Tinubu stands no chance of securing a second term in the 2027 presidential election, arguing that the current hardship faced by Nigerians has hardened public resolve against his return.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, December 15, the lawmaker dismissed claims that Tinubu has never lost an election and insisted that the president would be defeated when Nigerians next go to the polls. According to Abaribe, widespread suffering across the country has made citizens more politically conscious and determined.

“I do not think so. Everybody loses elections, and you will see when the time comes. He will lose in 2027 because I know what Nigerians are feeling outside,” he said.

Abaribe went further to question the legitimacy of Tinubu’s 2023 victory, claiming the president did not genuinely win the election but was declared the winner nonetheless. He said the opposition accepted the outcome at the time but would be better prepared in the next contest.

“Tinubu never won the 2023 election, and everybody knows it. But we said fine, he has been declared the winner, no problem. We acknowledge him as president, but we are going to meet him in the field, and I will see how he is going to cobble together what will make him win again.

“It won’t work because this time everybody will be ready. It will no longer be an announcement at 3 a.m. before people wake up in the morning. This time, people are ready, we are ready, and the masses are even more ready,” he added.

The senator also criticised the state of the economy and insecurity under the current administration, questioning where Tinubu would find the votes needed to win another term in office.

On the recent wave of defections from opposition parties to the ruling All Progressives Congress, Abaribe ruled out any possibility of joining the APC, saying he would only consider such a move if no political party remained in the country.

“If there is anybody who is going to defect to the APC, I think I should be the very, very last one. By the time I defect, it would mean there are no parties left in Nigeria, including the APC,” he said.

He argued that the influx of defectors would not strengthen the ruling party but instead worsen internal conflicts and leadership struggles, insisting that the situation would ultimately benefit the opposition.

“I have a very simple theory about defections. I think it is very good for us in the opposition that these defections are happening. All the APC is doing is absorbing all the problems it is going to face; they are right inside the party now. Ask yourself, in all the states where there are defections, what is going on there now?” he stated.

Abaribe described the APC as a fragile political structure, saying the opposition would exploit its weaknesses during the election season. He also reaffirmed his commitment to the opposition coalition, which has adopted the African Democratic Congress as its platform for 2027, dismissing claims that the move was solely designed to promote Atiku Abubakar.

According to him, the party has yet to release its guidelines and internal arrangements ahead of the election, stressing that opposition leaders remain united in their goal of removing the APC from power.

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