Former Vice President and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has raised concern over the low voter turnout recorded in Saturday’s FCT Area Council elections.
In a statement reacting to the exercise, posted by his media aide Paul Ibe on X, the former Vice President described the turnout — which averaged below 20 per cent, with Abuja Municipal Area Council recording a figure of 7.8 per cent — as a damning verdict on the health of Nigeria’s democracy under the current administration.
Atiku said the abysmal civic participation in the nation’s capital, the symbolic heartbeat of the federation, is not accidental.
He argued that it is the predictable outcome of a political environment, which he claimed has been poisoned by intolerance, intimidation and the systematic weakening of opposition voices.
The former presidential candidate alleged that the administration of President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress government have pursued policies that shrink democratic space, harass dissenters, and foster a climate where alternative political viewpoints are treated as threats rather than contributions to national development.
“When citizens lose faith that their votes matter, democracy begins to die,” Atiku stated. “What we are witnessing is not mere voter apathy. It is a direct consequence of an administration that governs with a chokehold on pluralism. Democracy in Nigeria is being suffocated — slowly, steadily, and dangerously.”
He warned that the steady erosion of participatory governance, if left unchecked, could inflict irreversible damage on the democratic fabric painstakingly built over decades.
“A democracy without vibrant opposition, without free political competition, and without public confidence is democracy in name only. If this chokehold is not released, history will record this era as the period when our hard-won freedoms were traded for fear and conformity,” he added.
The former Vice President called on opposition parties and democratic forces across the country to close ranks and forge a united front.
“This is no longer about party lines; it is about preserving the Republic. The time to stand together to rescue and rebuild Nigeria is now,” he stated.
