Donald Duke, presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), has said President Bola Tinubu’s administration has exposed what he described as the weakness of the political structure behind the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), warning that economic hardship could significantly shape the 2027 presidential election.
Duke spoke on Monday night during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he was asked whether Tinubu was politically stronger in 2026 than he was when he won the 2023 presidential election.
The former Cross River State governor disagreed, arguing that the economic difficulties Nigerians have experienced under the administration had weakened the goodwill and sympathy that accompanied Tinubu into office.
“I don’t think so, I think his governance has exposed the weakness of the contraption called APC. I don’t think he has the sympathies he had in 2023,” Duke said.
BusinessDay reports that Tinubu won the 2023 presidential election amid a three-way contest involving Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party. The fragmentation of the opposition vote has since become a major reference point in discussions over how to unseat the president in 2027.
According to Duke, the central issue ahead of the 2027 election would not necessarily be the political structures being assembled by the ruling party, but the daily economic realities confronting ordinary Nigerians.
“Things have gone harder for people, a lot of people are disillusioned by his style of governance, hope has turned into despair,” he said.
Duke acknowledged that the APC and the Tinubu administration had built substantial political structures ahead of the 2027 election, but argued that such structures could be undermined by voters’ determination to protect their economic interests at the ballot box.
“Yes, you talk about structures and all that but I think on the election day they will be fighting for their own survival,” he said.
His comments came as opposition parties and political blocs intensified efforts to build a common platform capable of challenging Tinubu and the APC in 2027.
The opposition has continued to grapple with disagreements over presidential ambition, zoning, party platforms and the choice of a consensus candidate, despite repeated calls for unity.
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