The presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party, Donald Duke, has described President Bola Tinubu as a formidable political opponent, warning opposition politicians against attempting to unseat the incumbent without first building a united front ahead of the 2027 general election.
Duke, a former Cross River State governor, disclosed this in an interview shared by Symfoni, a podcast on its YouTube channel on Friday.
There, he warned that fragmented coalition can’t beat Tinubu in 2027.
Discussing the prospects of opposition parties challenging the All Progressives Congress in 2027, Duke said the advantage of incumbency should not be underestimated.
He argued that the ruling party’s control of government institutions gives an incumbent president a significant advantage during elections.
“Even if the APC did nothing, right? They’re the party in power. If there’s a problem on that day, the IG of police will not go to any of the contestants. He’ll go to the president.
“So everything is skewed in favour of incumbent. Respect that,” Duke said.
According to him, opposition parties must therefore come together if they hope to mount a serious challenge against Tinubu.
He stated, “The only way you can seriously charge tackling incumbent is to come together to tackle and to have the force.
“Otherwise, you’ll be factionalised. So, I think when you talk of rigging, we’re rigging it against ourselves because of our ego. We need to come together.”
Duke then used a colourful analogy to describe the challenge of taking on Tinubu, urging opposition politicians to recognise the President’s political strength.
“Bola Tinubu is not an average politician. You don’t go to fight a lion who also has horns,” he said.
Explaining the metaphor, Duke said confronting such an opponent without adequate preparation would leave the challenger vulnerable.
“Can you imagine a lion with a horn? Yes, right? It’s already a dangerous animal.
“Then you now give it a horn and you say go and fight it with knife and fork. You’ll be the dinner. So, let’s get real,” he said.
