Paul Ibeh, an aide of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, says the administration of President Bola Tnubu is a civilian dictatorship.

Ibeh made this statement on Wednesday when he appeared as a guest on ‘The Morning Brief’, a programme on Channels Television.

He said that major opposition leaders, including Abubakar, who was the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, were being urged to redeem the country from its current state.

“Atiku Abubakar and other leaders are also once again being called upon to redeem Nigeria because what we are having right now is a civilian dictatorship.

“What we had then in 1996 and the rest of them, you know, was a military dictatorship, and these people are probably wearing ‘agbada’ and suit and all of that, but they are no different. They are even worse than the military dictatorship,” Ibeh said.

He said there was no reason why members of the coalition could not remain in the PDP, since the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, could work with the government of President Tinubu while being a member of the opposition PDP.

On whether Atiku could emerge as the sole candidate of the coalition, amid the issue of zoning, he said, “This coalition will stand to benefit from all of the experiences that he has had over the years. So, they are not focused on who will be the presidential candidate and all of that.”

Ibeh further dismisses claims that Atiku ran the PDP into a crisis, following the party’s primary for the 2023 presidential election.

According to him, Wike lost in an open presidential primary to Atiku, but rather than work for the PDP, worked against the party in the presidential election.

He also accused the minister of scuttling efforts aimed at fixing the crisis in the PDP.

A group of concerned leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-Senate President David Mark, have asked Nigerians to join in helping to unseat President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

They made the call in Abuja on Tuesday after a closed-door meeting to discuss the state of the PDP and the country.

In a communiqué issued after the meeting, they called on all PDP members and Nigerians to come together in a broad coalition committed to national unity, democratic principles, security, economic recovery, and a strong fight against corruption.

They emphasised the need for coalition and partnership to develop strategies that reflect both national and local political realities, in preparation for future elections.

Nigeria under civilian dictatorship — Atiku’s aide, Paul Ibeh