ABUJA, NIGERIA — In a striking internal rebellion that exposes deep anxieties within Nigeria’s ruling political establishment, the former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Moh. Lukman, has delivered a brutal prognosis for President Bola Tinubu’s political future.

Lukman, a founding member and noted progressive intellectual within the party, warned that the APC has become so deeply unpopular due to its harsh economic policies that President Tinubu cannot win the 2027 presidential election without relying on massive, systemic electoral rigging.

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“Unpopular and Unable to Win”: The Core Accusation

Lukman’s warnings were made public as part of his ongoing critiques of the current administration’s trajectory. According to the outspoken politician, the level of hunger, inflation, and administrative failure experienced under the “Renewed Hope” agenda has completely eroded the APC’s organic electoral viability.

“Tinubu’s APC is now unpopular and cannot win the 2027 election without rigging.”

— Salihu Moh. Lukman, former APC National Vice Chairman (North-West)

Lukman argued that rather than focusing on genuine governance reforms, economic relief, or rebuilding trust with the Nigerian electorate, the APC is instead actively preparing the ground to manipulate the 2027 electoral process because it knows a free and fair election is unwinnable.

Why Lukman’s Critique Carries Weight

For political observers and readers of 247ureports.com, Lukman’s broadside is not easily dismissed as typical “opposition noise” for three main reasons:

                  THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE LUKMAN REBELLION
┌───────────────────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ THE INSIDER ADVANTAGE         │ THE PROGRESSIVE IDEOLOGY                 │
├───────────────────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ • As a former NWC member, he  │ • Historically aligned with the merging  │
│   understands the party’s     │   factions (CPC/ACN) that created the    │
│   internal machinery.         │   APC in 2013.                               │
│ • He exposes the inner panic  │ • Deeply critical of the party's         │
│   of the party’s top brass.   │   abandonment of its "progressive" roots.│
└───────────────────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────┘

1. An Insider’s Blueprint: Having served in the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC, Lukman is intimately familiar with how the party plans campaigns, manages state apparatuses, and secures outcomes. His warning suggests that the machinery of state power is already being aligned toward coercion rather than persuasion.
2. The “Disaster” Declaration: Lukman has gone on record calling the current APC-led government a “disaster” to the foundational promises the party made to Nigerians in 2015. He asserts that the party has transformed from a coalition of change into a reactionary vehicle dedicated solely to keeping the political elite in power.
3. The Call for an Opposition Coalition: Lukman has actively championed the necessity of a unified, collegiate opposition coalition—bringing together figures like Peter Obi, Rabiu Kwankwaso, and Atiku Abubakar—to present a formidable front capable of resisting any state-backed attempts to hijack the 2027 polls.

The Imperial President and the 2027 Playbook

Lukman’s warnings align seamlessly with the critiques of other prominent political scientists, such as Professor Jibrin Ibrahim, who have also accused the presidency of using state powers to weaken opposition parties and manipulate regulatory bodies.

The fear among civil society and political watchdogs is that with the national grid failing, poverty rates soaring, and massive budget padding (such as the ₦213 million local borehole allocations) exhausting the nation’s post-subsidy savings, the ruling party’s only viable path to self-preservation in 2027 is the systemic subversion of the ballot box.

Lukman’s “confessional” statement serves as a stark warning to the Nigerian electorate and the international community: the battle for 2027 will not merely be fought on policy or popularity, but on whether the institutions of democracy can withstand a desperate ruling class fighting for its political survival.