Alleged Inciting Comment: PDP Condemns APC Attempt To Silence Makinde

The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde-backed Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has condemned attempts by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to silence the governor.

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Reacting to a statement issued by the National Secretariat of the APC, the party described it as not only “disingenuous but a calculated exercise in political amnesia, selective morality, and intellectual dishonesty.”

The party’s Publicity Secretary, Michael Ogunsina, said in a statement on Sunday evening that the APC cannot rewrite history simply because it is now inconvenient.

According to him, this is the same political platform that once built its opposition identity on charged, confrontational, and highly mobilising rhetoric.

He added that the records are not hidden.

“The then opposition leader, now President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, at the height of national protests and political tension, consistently framed his political messaging around resistance to perceived state failure, famously declaring that political power ‘must be fought for’ and mobilised with absolute resolve.

“His political posture at the time was unapologetically aggressive in tone and intent, designed to galvanise mass political action.

“Similarly, former President Muhammadu Buhari, during his years in opposition, repeatedly issued hardline warnings about electoral outcomes and national consequences—language that shaped intense political mobilisation and public agitation at the time.

“These were not passive statements; they were powerful political signals that shaped the national mood. These are verifiable facts, not reinterpretations.

“It is, therefore, the height of hypocrisy for the APC today to attempt to criminalise Governor Seyi Makinde for referencing a historical episode as a cautionary reminder against political intolerance.

“A democratic society cannot elevate opposition-era rhetoric into political virtue and then reclassify historical references as incitement once power changes hands.

“Governor Makinde did not call for violence. He did what responsible statesmen do: he invoked history as a warning, not a weapon. Only those uncomfortable with democratic accountability would deliberately distort such context for political convenience.

“What is even more troubling is the APC’s growing pattern of intolerance toward dissenting voices while attempting to sanctify its own political history. This is not governance; it is revisionism dressed as outrage.

“The APC’s statement reflects not strength, but political anxiety—anxiety driven by rising public dissatisfaction, economic hardship, and a widening credibility gap between promises made and realities experienced across the country under the current administration led by President Tinubu.

“Attempts to drag Governor Makinde into manufactured controversy will fail. Nigerians are not unaware of the emerging pattern of misrepresentation targeted at opposition figures who consistently challenge power with facts and accountability,” the party said.

The PDP reiterated that democracy is not a monologue, stating: “It is not the preservation of one political voice amplified while others are muted. It is a marketplace of ideas, not a monopoly of opinions.

“If the APC now insists that historical references constitute incitement, then it must first subject its own political history to the same standard it seeks to impose on others. Anything less is selective justice and democratic bad faith.

“Governor Seyi Makinde remains resolute, focused, and firmly committed to democratic principles, responsible governance, and political maturity. No amount of coordinated propaganda, intimidation, or historical distortion will alter that fact,” it added.

End