<\/p>\n
Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, a chieftain and presidential hopeful of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has described the All Progressives Congress (APC) as \u201ca cult, not a political party.\u201d<\/p>\n
Olawepo-Hashim said the ruling party lacks ideology, internal democracy, and a coherent vision for Nigeria\u2019s future.<\/p>\n
Speaking on AIT Democracy Today and later at an interactive session with journalists in Abuja over the weekend, the former presidential candidate alleged that the APC functions more like an authoritarian movement than a democratic platform.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the APC, one or two individuals hand down instructions for everyone else to obey like zombies. That is not a political party; it is a cult,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Olawepo-Hashim argued that the APC has presided over unprecedented economic decline and worsening insecurity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey promised change, and indeed they brought change \u2014 by dragging Nigeria\u2019s GDP from over $570 billion in 2014 to less than $300 billion in 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey crashed GDP per capita from over $3,000 to below $1,000. They also expanded insecurity from the north-east to engulf the north-west, north-central, and south-east,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Comparing the APC with the PDP, he maintained that the opposition party remains Nigeria\u2019s \u201ctruly democratic platform,\u201d where divergent views and internal debates shape decisions.<\/p>\n
He cited the recent show of solidarity in Zamfara, where PDP governors rallied behind the national chairman, Umar Damagum, as evidence of the party\u2019s consultative culture.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything was beautiful. Even the governors had to persuade NEC. This is the PDP tradition alive again,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Olawepo-Hashim recalled the internal contest in 2003 when then-President Olusegun Obasanjo was subjected to a competitive primary election.<\/p>\n