Prominent opposition leaders in Nigeria have raised alarm over what they describe as the growing politicisation of key state institutions, warning that the country’s democracy is under grave threat if the trend continues.
In a joint press statement titled “Anti-Corruption, Not Anti-Opposition,” the leaders accused the Federal Government of deploying anti-graft and security agencies to intimidate and persecute opposition figures, rather than to combat corruption impartially.
The statement, jointly signed by former Senate President David Mark; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; former PDP National Chairman, Chief Bode George; Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi; former APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; and Mallam Lawal Batagarawa, alleged that institutions such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigeria Police, and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) are increasingly being perceived as tools of selective justice.
“We are compelled by duty to nation and conscience to alert our compatriots and the international community to the unfortunate and gradual slide of our country into a state where key national institutions are being used for political intimidation and systematic persecution of opposition leaders,” the statement read.
According to the opposition figures, there are mounting concerns that state power is being deployed not to prevent or punish economic crimes, but to weaken opposition voices and dismantle Nigeria’s multiparty democracy ahead of the 2027 general elections.
They warned of what they described as a “dangerous agenda” aimed at forcing opposition-controlled states into the ruling party’s fold, not through credible elections, but through intimidation and pressure exerted via anti-corruption agencies.
“Recent defections of opposition governors into the ruling party have reinforced public suspicion that political pressure, not ideological conviction, is driving this realignment,” the leaders said, adding that the trend poses “a grave danger to Nigeria’s democratic future.”
The statement accused the EFCC in particular of being weaponised against opposition figures, while allegations involving members of the ruling party are allegedly ignored or treated with leniency.
The opposition leaders referenced a remark previously attributed to a former APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole — “Once you have joined APC, all your sins are forgiven” — noting that the comment has come to symbolise what many Nigerians now perceive as selective enforcement of anti-corruption laws.
They cited recent cases in which senior government officials implicated in scandals were neither promptly investigated nor prosecuted, despite public outrage, while opposition figures were subjected to what they described as aggressive investigations and media trials.
“Such selective enforcement undermines the legitimacy of anti-corruption efforts and erodes public trust,” the statement said.
The signatories further expressed concern that the independence of the EFCC, which they described as a critical institution created to safeguard Nigeria’s economic integrity, is being steadily eroded.
“An agency designed for prevention and accountability risks becoming an instrument of political persecution, undermining both justice and democracy,” they warned, adding that visible social and political injustice could escalate into widespread instability as the country approaches another election cycle.
The opposition leaders made a number of demands, including the immediate depoliticisation of the EFCC, a return of the commission to its statutory mandate as outlined in Sections 6 and 7 of its enabling Act, and renewed vigilance to protect Nigeria’s multiparty democracy from degenerating into a de facto one-party state.
They also called for the embedding of anti-graft operatives in government payment processes at all levels to strengthen preventive mechanisms against corruption, and proposed amendments to the EFCC Act to support this approach.
In addition, the leaders urged the Attorney General of the Federation, in consultation with the National Assembly, to establish an independent review body with full access to public accounts from 2015 to 2025. The proposed body, they said, should conduct a transparent review of financial transactions across federal, state, and local governments, publish its findings, and recommend reforms to strengthen anti-corruption efforts.
The opposition figures said such a body should be chaired by an eminent judge and include representatives from civil society, professional bodies, security agencies, political parties represented in the National Assembly, and relevant financial and intelligence institutions.
In a broader call to action, the leaders urged Nigerians across party lines, regions, professions, and faiths to defend democracy and resist what they described as the systematic weakening of opposition forces.
“Our democracy is under threat through the deliberate and systematic weakening of opposition forces, with the EFCC as the central instrument in this troubling strategy,” the statement declared.
They also disclosed plans to engage Nigeria’s international partners and diplomatic missions, including those of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, the World Bank and the United Nations, to express concerns over the direction of Nigeria’s anti-graft framework and demand reforms.
Quoting political philosopher Edmund Burke, the leaders warned that “the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing,” and echoed Martin Luther King Jr.’s admonition that “silence in the face of evil is itself evil.”
“Now is the time for all of us to rise in defence of our cherished multiparty democracy, and indeed, in defence of the very soul of our nation,” the statement concluded, stressing that Nigeria belongs to all its citizens, “not to a single party or a single leader.”
