Senior Advocate of Nigeria and constitutional lawyer, Professor Mike Ozekhome, has raised fresh concerns about Nigeria’s political future, warning that the country is gradually drifting into a one-party state, a development he believes could lead to full-blown dictatorship if the trend continues unchallenged.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Hard Copy programme, Ozekhome did not mince words in his assessment of the nation’s political climate. “Nigeria is gradually driving without knowing it towards a one-party state,” he said. “And in a one-party state, dictatorship reigns supreme. Everybody will agree. National Assembly pocketed, judiciary will be pocketed, and everybody will be saying ‘yes, yes, yes.’”
He pointed to the increasing rate of defections by elected officials as a major sign that politicians are no longer driven by principles or ideology. According to him, political parties in Nigeria have become so similar that they are now indistinguishable. “It’s like beans, akara, and moi-moi; they’re the same,” he said, in reference to how politicians cross from one party to another without any sense of loyalty or difference in values.
He recalled how the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), during its time in power, once boasted that it would govern Nigeria for 60 years. Instead, it lost power after just 16 years, mainly due to internal issues and overconfidence. He sees a similar situation unfolding under the current administration, where opposition voices are scattered and the ruling party appears increasingly dominant.
He also took note of President Bola Tinubu’s strategic appointments across major institutions, saying the president is positioning loyalists in critical sectors of governance. While this might seem politically smart, Ozekhome warned it could result in a situation where “Tinubu virtually runs against himself in 2027” if opposition parties remain weak and disorganised.
But for Ozekhome, the problem is not just with the political class. He expressed frustration over what he described as growing public indifference and acceptance of hardship. In his view, Nigerians have been so overwhelmed by suffering that they’ve become numb and submissive.
“The average Nigerian has been so pushed to the wall that he begins to see his oppressor as a saviour,” he said. “It’s a kind of Stockholm Syndrome. People are beginning to love their oppressors. They have been so beaten, so battered, so tamed that they no longer fight back.”
He urged the public to resist this form of psychological defeat and realise the power they hold in a democracy. “When you are docile, they take you for granted,” he said. “The power is yours; it is not theirs. If Nigerians rise up, peacefully and lawfully, and demand accountability, change will come.”
