APC: Tinubu’s Victory Was No Accident

The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has fired back at former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, dismissing his recent claims about the 2027 elections as a misinterpretation of Nigeria’s political reality. In a sharp rebuttal, the party clarified that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s ascent to the presidency was the result of a deliberate, nationwide strategy rather than a stroke of luck or a localized anomaly.

Seye Oladejo, the spokesperson for the Lagos APC, characterized Aregbesola’s comments as “intellectually disingenuous.” He argued that attempting to isolate the voting patterns of Lagos from the national context fails to account for how presidential mandates are secured in a country as diverse as Nigeria. According to Oladejo, the 2023 victory was built on a broad coalition that spanned across regional and ethnic lines, ensuring the President met the required constitutional spread.

The party also addressed Aregbesola’s focus on the opposition’s performance in Lagos during the presidential polls, describing that specific outcome as “pyrrhic.” The APC pointed out that any perceived gains by the opposition were short-lived, as evidenced by the subsequent governorship election where the ruling party secured a resounding victory. For the APC, this rapid recovery demonstrated that their grassroots structure and institutional control in Lagos remain unshakable despite temporary fluctuations.

Beyond the numbers, the Lagos APC framed the 2023 results as a badge of honor for President Tinubu’s democratic legacy. They argued that the fact an opposition candidate could win in the President’s home state—under a government controlled by his own party—is the ultimate proof of the integrity of the electoral process. Instead of viewing the Lagos result as a sign of weakness, the party interprets it as a testament to Tinubu’s commitment to a credible and transparent ballot.

The exchange highlights a deepening rift within the progressive camp, particularly as Aregbesola has recently been linked to new political alignments. The APC’s response serves as a firm reminder that they consider the “Lagos model” of politics to be resilient and focused on the long game. By dismissing the notion of an “accidental” presidency, the party is reinforcing the narrative of Tinubu as a master strategist whose path to power was paved by decades of bridge-building.

As the political atmosphere begins to heat up ahead of the next general election cycle, this back-and-forth signals a tightening of ranks within the APC. The party appears determined to shut down any narrative that suggests its influence is waning or that its 2023 success was a fluke. For Oladejo and the Lagos chapter, the focus remains on the party’s enduring acceptance at the grassroots, which they believe will continue to dictate the pace of Nigerian politics leading into 2027.