Seyi Makinde Warns Tinubu That Smothering the Opposition Risks Sparking Historic 1960s-Style Political Violence

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has delivered a blunt warning to the federal government, declaring that the country’s current political climate is becoming toxic for alternative voices and could inadvertently drag Nigeria backward into a dark era of civil unrest.

The governor made the remarks while welcoming an unprecedented coalition of opposition leaders to the National Summit of Opposition Political Party Leaders in Ibadan. The high-stakes meeting transformed the state capital into a buzzing political hub as rival political blocks gathered to find common ground against the sweeping electoral dominance of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Addressing a packed banquet hall that included former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party leader Peter Obi, and former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, Makinde argued that the systematic consolidation of legislative and state power under a single political umbrella is actively choking out competitive democracy. He emphasized that true democracy is not measured merely by the survival of a single dominant party, but by the confidence of everyday citizens that their alternative votes actually matter.

In his most controversial statement of the night, the governor drew a direct line between the current political squeeze and the explosive political collapse of Nigeria’s First Republic. He warned that when democratic spaces are closed and opposition voices are deliberately weakened, it sets off a dangerous chain reaction where citizens lose faith in the ballot box and take matters into their own hands.

“This is a gathering about something fundamental: the survival of a system that allows Nigeria to remain open, competitive, and accountable,” Governor Seyi Makinde cautioned. “Because democracy without opposition is not a democracy; it is a slow drift toward a one-party state, and Nigeria must not make that drift. No matter how strong any party becomes, the presence of credible opposition is what sustains a nation. If we allow it to weaken, whether by design or by neglect, then we all bear the consequences.”

The political fallout from the speech was immediate. The ruling APC released a scathing national statement accusing the Oyo governor of using highly inflammatory rhetoric to score cheap points. The APC leadership argued that invoking the memory of “Operation Wetie”—a notorious period of political killings and property burnings in the old Western Region—amounted to an unpatriotic attempt to incite the public to lawlessness. The ruling party maintained that the opposition’s current lack of influence is entirely self-inflicted, stemming from terrible internal leadership and endless courtroom battles rather than government persecution.

Despite the fierce pushback from Abuja, the Ibadan summit concluded with a major joint communique. The participating parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), and the Labour Party, officially resolved to bury their historical grievances and work toward fielding a single, unified presidential candidate to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the upcoming 2027 election cycle.

With Makinde firmly throwing his hat into the ring and the opposition beginning to align its machinery, the political landscape is heating up significantly. As the country monitors this unfolding alliance, the Ibadan declaration has set a definitive tone for the long, rocky road leading to the next national ballot.