The lawmaker representing Amuwo-Odofin Constituency I in the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Foluke Oshafile, has said opposition parties are not yet prepared to work together to wrest power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 general elections.
Oshafile, who is a member of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), said the opposition could only defeat the ruling party if its various political interests were brought together for a genuine purpose.
She spoke in an interview with journalists in Lagos, where she also discussed her defection from the Labour Party (LP) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and later the NDC, her performance as the only opposition lawmaker in the Lagos Assembly, state police, constitutional reform and the removal of fuel subsidy.
On the prospects of an opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 elections, Oshafile said the Nigerian Constitution permits a multi-party system but argued that the opposition had yet to demonstrate the willingness required to form a formidable alliance.
According to her, the APC itself emerged from a merger of opposition parties ahead of the 2015 elections, but the current opposition had not shown the same level of readiness.
“The Constitution of Nigeria allows multiple party system. It is now left for us to merge if we are ready for a genuine change,” she said.
“The APC merged with other parties in 2014 before they took over at the centre in 2015, but are we not ready? The Constitution allows diverse parties. We operate a multiple party system like the United States of America, but only two parties are dominant in the country. So, when we are ready, we will get there. But we are not ready.”
Asked whether the opposition could take over at the federal and state levels in 2027, she said the decision ultimately rested with the electorate.
“Well, they are the ones in power. Like I said, when Nigerians are ready, they would do the needful. They are not ready,” she said.
Oshafile, however, expressed confidence in the NDC’s prospects, particularly in her Amuwo-Odofin constituency, where she said the party was building its structure ahead of the election.
The NDC has emerged as one of the opposition platforms attracting prominent politicians ahead of 2027, including former Anambra State governor Peter Obi, who was adopted as the party’s presidential candidate in May.
The lawmaker also dismissed suggestions that the opposition’s performance in Lagos in 2023 could not be replicated in 2027.
She urged political parties to allow public opinion polls and surveys to determine the current mood of Lagos voters rather than relying on assumptions.
“Let everybody go and do his or her homework. Let’s throw the survey open. It’s not just my local government, let us get the opinions of Lagosians and let’s see if 2023 would not repeat itself in Lagos State,” she said.
Oshafile, who entered the Lagos Assembly in 2023 on the platform of the Labour Party, said her subsequent movement to the ADC and NDC was influenced by what she described as the political preferences of her constituents and her decision to remain aligned with Peter Obi.
She said she considered her constituents’ views important in determining her political decisions.
“As a politician, if you are not sensitive enough to feel the pulse of your constituents, you would miss out. I always say that my people sent me here; it’s beyond me,” she said.
On her performance as a first-term lawmaker, Oshafile said she had focused on legislation, oversight and constituency representation despite being the only opposition member in the 40-member Assembly.
She listed interventions including support for solar lighting projects, replacement of stolen manhole covers, youth ICT training and scholarship programmes, as well as advocacy on roads, drainage, electricity, healthcare and education.
She said she had also maintained regular engagements with residents through town-hall meetings and meetings with community associations.
According to her, residents have nicknamed her “talk and do” because of her efforts to remain accessible and respond to constituency needs.
Oshafile said she was seeking a second term to consolidate on what she described as the foundation laid during her first tenure.
She also disclosed that more than 200 constituents had benefited from employment and skills-related interventions connected to her activities as chairman of the House Committee on Wealth Creation and Employment.
On alleged harassment of opposition politicians, Oshafile said she had experienced the destruction of campaign posters and banners, as well as damage to vehicles.
She said the incidents had not discouraged her from political activities.
The lawmaker also expressed reservations about the immediate introduction of state police, despite supporting the principle in the long term.
She argued that existing political tensions and alleged intimidation of opposition politicians could be worsened if state governments controlled police formations.
“I welcome state police, but there are some grey areas that we need to block because when we put it in practice you would see that we are not ready,” she said.
“Even for ordinary campaigns, see the way those in power are oppressing the opponents. How do you think it would be when states have their own police?”
She said Nigeria needed to address safeguards against abuse before implementing state police.
Oshafile also called for fundamental constitutional reform, arguing that Nigeria should move towards a stronger federal structure.
“If we truly want to operate federalism, let’s do it, go and manage your region and pay tax to the federal government just as it was in the 1963 Constitution,” she said.
She linked several longstanding national debates, including resource control, policing, revenue sharing and education, to what she described as weaknesses in the existing constitutional arrangement.
On fuel subsidy, Oshafile rejected suggestions that the subsidy regime should be restored, saying the country could not afford to return to the old system.
“No, fuel subsidy cannot come back. Nobody in his right senses would say we should go back to fuel subsidy,” she said.
She, however, distinguished Peter Obi’s criticism of the subsidy removal from a demand for its reinstatement.
According to her, Obi had criticised the manner in which the subsidy was removed and discussed alternative ways of managing the consequences, rather than advocating a return to the previous system.
She also described former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s promise that fuel subsidy would return under his presidency as a political statement.