Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has injected a note of political realism into Nigeria’s power conversation, insisting that the All Progressives Congress (APC) should not assume permanent control of the country’s leadership.
Speaking at the 23rd Daily Trust Dialogue themed “Nigeria’s Fourth Republic: What Is Working and What Is Not,” El-Rufai argued that one of Nigeria’s quiet democratic strengths is the absence of a permanent ruling party. According to him, the very possibility that the APC could be voted out in 2027 reflects a system where power remains open to challenge.
“Nigeria does not have a permanent ruling party, and that is an achievement,” El-Rufai said, recalling how the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held power for 16 years before losing it in 2015. In his view, the APC is not immune to the same fate. “The APC will not govern forever. It is likely that in 2027, the APC will be gone,” he added.
Beyond the headline-grabbing prediction, El-Rufai’s remarks point to a deeper issue within Nigeria’s democratic experiment. While electoral competition exists, he argued that it has yet to mature into meaningful accountability or improved governance. Power may change hands, but the quality of leadership, he suggested, has not consistently followed suit.
He attributed this gap partly to the weakness of political parties, which he described as largely personality-driven and transactional rather than ideologically grounded. In such a system, political competition often revolves around individuals and alliances, not clear policy alternatives or governance philosophies.
El-Rufai’s comments also subtly challenge the APC itself. Coming from a prominent figure within the ruling party’s political tradition, the warning serves as a reminder that electoral victory cannot substitute for performance. If governance fails to deliver tangible improvements, voters may once again seek alternatives—just as they did in 2015.
For observers, the remarks reinforce a familiar but unresolved paradox in Nigerian politics: elections are competitive, power is transferable, yet governance outcomes remain uneven. El-Rufai’s intervention suggests that the true test of Nigeria’s democracy is no longer whether power can change hands, but whether political competition can finally produce accountable leadership and effective governance.
As 2027 approaches, his words are likely to resonate—not just as a prediction, but as a cautionary signal to those who believe political dominance is guaranteed.
El-Rufai: APC’s Grip on Power Is Not Guaranteed Beyond 2027
