I write not merely as a concerned citizen, but as a Nigerian troubled by the growing assault on internal democracy within our political parties — an assault that threatens the very foundation of the democratic system upon which our nation stands.
Across Nigeria today, what many political parties parade as “primary election results” are, in truth, manufactured figures — concocted in hotel rooms, private residences, and party secretariats long before delegates cast a single vote. Party faithful who travel long distances, queue under the sun, and participate in good faith are routinely presented with outcomes that bear no resemblance to the realities on the ground.
This dangerous culture is no longer isolated. It has become systemic. From one region to another, genuine votes are being discarded, delegates ignored, and predetermined candidates imposed through falsified figures designed to satisfy a handful of political power brokers. Democracy within the parties is steadily being replaced by manipulation, intimidation, and transactional politics.
The consequences are grave.
First, it destroys public trust. Millions of young Nigerians and ordinary party members are becoming convinced that participation is meaningless because outcomes are predetermined. A democracy where votes no longer count breeds apathy, anger, and eventual instability.
Second, it weakens political parties themselves. Candidates produced through fraudulent primaries emerge without legitimacy, grassroots support, or moral authority. Such candidates often struggle to inspire voters during general elections because the people know they were never truly chosen.
Third, and most dangerously, it entrenches poor governance. Leaders who emerge through manipulated processes rarely feel accountable to the people. When politicians do not need the voters to win, they eventually stop listening to the voters altogether.
Mr President, few Nigerians understand the mechanics of party politics better than you do. Your political journey was built on organisation, strategy, and grassroots mobilisation. You understand that no democracy can thrive when internal party processes become a mere ritual designed to legitimise predetermined outcomes.
Nigeria stands at a critical moment. Citizens are already questioning the credibility of democratic institutions. If political parties — the vehicles through which democracy operates — can no longer conduct transparent and credible primaries, then the future of our electoral system itself is in danger.
I therefore respectfully urge you to champion transparent, verifiable, and credible party primary elections across all political parties.
Encourage party leadership to investigate and nullify primaries where there is overwhelming evidence of manipulation and fabricated results.
Support stronger electoral and party reforms that protect the sanctity of delegates’ votes and restore confidence in internal democracy.
Send a clear message that democracy must begin within the political parties before it can flourish nationally.
Your Excellency, history often remembers leaders not only for the elections they won, but for the institutions they strengthened. This is one of those defining moments.
Nigeria cannot continue to build democracy on fabricated numbers and imposed outcomes. A nation survives when the will of the people is respected, when votes genuinely count, and when political participation has meaning.
Anything less is a slow erosion of democracy itself.
Yours sincerely,
An open letter to President Bola Tinubu by Comrade Gbenga Soloki is Executive Director of the Centre Against Injustice and Domestic Violence
