There comes a moment in the life of every failing empire when it begins to mistake criticism for treason, and opposition for madness. The All-Progressives Congress (APC) appears to have reached that point; and its latest public meltdown proves it. In its unprovoked tirade against former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the APC has dropped any pretense of maturity, credibility, or coherence. What Nigerians witnessed was not a response – it was a tantrum. A furious, foam-lipped rant by a party that has clearly run out of ideas, integrity, and shame. Instead of offering solutions to Nigeria’s economic tailspin, the APC offers insults. Instead of addressing a death toll of 3,100 Nigerians in just three months, it calls names. And instead of answering for rising food prices, fuel queues, power blackouts, and an imploding currency, it digs up the ghost of political grudges. Why? Because the APC is frightened. And like all bullies when confronted with the truth, it lashes out with a vulgar tirade that exposes just how fragile, frightened, and intellectually bankrupt the ruling party has become. This is not political strategy; it is political psychosis masquerading as party discipline.
Nigeria’s political space has become a theatre of absurdity, where the ruling APC now throws temper tantrums instead of governing, and the opposition responds with bonfires rather than blueprints. The APC, which once promised renewed hope, now peddles recycled hate. It lashes out at critics like a cornered regime, allergic to truth and intoxicated by power. Its obsessive fixation on silencing El-Rufai and any semblance of dissent betrays a ruling class that no longer seeks to lead, only to dominate. Nigeria is not a fiefdom, and critics are not traitors. To demonize those who challenge the ruling order is the behavior of autocrats, not democrats.
But let’s be brutally honest: the Tinubu administration is no longer a government; it is a glorified cult of personality. The economy is crumbling. Food inflation has broken the backs of the poor. Power generation remains erratic. Security is in tatters, with 3,100 Nigerians killed in just three months. And rather than face these truths, the APC chooses to gaslight the nation with bile and bluster. This is not just failure; it is failure weaponized. The APC’s response to El-Rufai’s criticisms is the political equivalent of arson: burn down the messenger rather than confront the message. It is the logic of tyrants, not patriots. A party that governs by insult and scapegoating does not deserve power; it deserves the boot.
To accuse El-Rufai of attempting to sabotage the “rotational principle” is laughable—especially coming from a party that has sabotaged the principle of competence, accountability, and national inclusion. It is the height of hypocrisy for the APC to warn others against clannishness when its own appointments reek of tribal bias and regional insularity. El-Rufai is not the problem. Neither is Atiku Abubakar. Neither is the ADC. The problem is that the ruling APC party now considers basic governance – feeding the people, securing the country, stabilizing the economy – an optional luxury rather than a constitutional duty. Let’s be honest: the APC is behaving less like a political party and more like a wounded autocracy under siege. It speaks of “national unity” but governs like a cartel. It invokes patriotism, but its only loyalty is to power. Now, having failed to silence hunger, it tries to silence critics.
And what is even more damning is the utter intellectual poverty of the APC’s response: name-calling in place of policy debate. “Clueless, rudderless, pitiful” – this is the lexicon of a party that cannot govern and cannot explain why it cannot govern. It is rhetoric without reason. Sound without substance. Noise without nuance. But Nigerians are not fooled. They see a government that promised renewed hope and delivered recycled suffering. They see a currency in free fall, a debt burden approaching N200 trillion, and a ruling elite still living in opulence while the masses line up for bread. They see kidnappers thriving, businesses dying, and the same leaders clapping for themselves in Abuja.
But while the APC’s response is reprehensible, the ADC is not without fault. In its counterattack, the ADC chose to descend into the same rhetorical gutter; swapping analysis for anger and banal vituperative aspersions, and clarity for combativeness. To call the APC “a failed party” and accuse it of “recycled failure” may feel cathartic, but it does little to elevate Nigeria’s already battered political discourse. The country is not in need of more rage; it is in need of responsibility. By mirroring the APC’s incendiary tone, the ADC risks becoming the very monster it seeks to slay. Opposition is not theatre; it is a sacred democratic duty. And while the ADC is right to demand accountability, it must also embody the civility, vision, and discipline that the ruling party so clearly lacks. This moment demands more than political mudslinging. It demands moral clarity. The APC must be condemned in the strongest possible terms for treating criticism as betrayal and governance as war. But the ADC must also rise above its impulse for rhetorical revenge. A broken nation cannot be healed by broken dialogue.
What Nigeria needs is not political warfare; it needs political leadership. The ADC is right: the APC behaves like an opposition party even while controlling every lever of power. It governs like a gang – aggressive in attack, allergic to scrutiny, and incapable of self-reflection. And now, when called to account by those it cannot control, it panics. If the APC had governed half as passionately as it insults, Nigeria would be a superpower by now. But instead, it has chosen the coward’s path: suppress dissent, rewrite failure, and punish those who speak out. Let it be said clearly: Nigerians owe the APC nothing. The APC owes Nigerians everything – answers, results, and justice. Not bombast. Not propaganda. Not pettiness. History has its eyes on 2027. And while the APC may try to shout down its critics today, it will not be able to shout down the ballot box. As 2027 approaches, both parties will have to answer to the Nigerian people. Not with insults. Not with character assassinations. But with ideas, competence, and courage. The next election will be a verdict; not on opposition rhetoric, but on APC performance. And unless something radical changes, that verdict will be damning.
