Video: ‘I didn’t have a gun’ – Tinubu reacts to claims of killing opposition

2026-02-26 - 12:18

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has dismissed allegations that he is behind recent defections from opposition parties to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), saying he neither coerced nor forced any politician to leave their party. The President made the remarks on Wednesday night during an interfaith breaking of the fast with members of the Senate at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where he responded to criticisms that his administration was weakening the opposition. Tinubu said critics were entitled to their opinions but insisted he had not used force or abused his authority against any political group, stressing that those who defected did so voluntarily. According to him, he could not be blamed for individuals who chose to leave their parties, likening such defections to people abandoning a sinking ship. He said, “Critics must talk. When they accused me of killing the opposition, but I didn’t have a gun. I could have given myself a licence when I have the authority. ‘I didn’t have a gun,’ Tinubu reacts to claims of killing opposition Credit: X // Nigaffairs pic.twitter.com/tP7QlowJWZ — Vanguard Newspapers (@vanguardngrnews) February 26, 2026 “But I can’t blame anybody for jumping out of a sinking ship if they did. What we have faced in the challenging period of this country, the terrorism and banditry, is causing us havoc. And we should pull together, unite in a way that our forefathers contemplated to bring about a constitutional democracy and pull us together. They didn’t say we should fight. It’s a good thing that we are working in harmony.” Tinubu further urged the National Assembly to begin the process of amending the Constitution to enable the establishment of state police as part of efforts to tackle the nation’s security crisis.