According to a report by Vanguard on Friday, May 8, 2026, former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, has cautioned against what she described as desperate efforts by Nigeria’s ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), to turn the country into a one-party state.
She maintained that attempts aimed at weakening opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections would fail despite the growing political pressure across the country.
Bucknor-Akerele spoke during an appearance on Vanguard’s political programme, Politics Hub, where she expressed concern over the present condition of the nation.
During the interview, she criticized the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, particularly on issues relating to insecurity, insurgency and the economic hardship being experienced by many Nigerians in different parts of the country.
While assessing the country’s political atmosphere under the Tinubu administration, the former deputy governor described the situation as dangerous.
She accused the ruling APC of concentrating on influencing and destabilizing opposition political parties at a time when citizens were battling rising living costs, inflation and worsening economic challenges affecting households and businesses nationwide.
She also expressed dissatisfaction with the political direction of the country, arguing that the focus of the ruling party should be on addressing the growing security concerns and economic instability rather than concentrating on political dominance ahead of future elections.
According to her, the continued moves against opposition parties raised concerns about the health of Nigeria’s democratic system as political activities intensify toward 2027.
Bucknor-Akerele previously served as deputy governor to Tinubu during his tenure as governor of Lagos State between May 1999 and December 2002. Tinubu, however, remained in office until May 2007.
Her exit from the administration followed disagreements over political matters and governance issues that created a division between both leaders during that period.
Speaking further on her relationship with Tinubu while they worked together in Lagos State, Bucknor-Akerele disclosed that both of them had different political visions and ambitions.
She stated that their disagreements stemmed from conflicting agendas within the Alliance for Democracy (AD), the political platform under which they were elected into office at the time.
She continued, “Bola Ahmed Tinubu did not want to work with me at all because he had a different agenda to the agenda of what the AD stood for at that time. What he wanted was somebody who would assist him in taking over the AD and because I was not ready to do that, we had our differences.”…..See More
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