The vice-presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Lawal Musa Daura, has said President Bola Tinubu is “not a stranger” to him and can be defeated in the 2027 presidential election, citing what he described as several errors committed by the current administration.
Daura, a former Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), made the remarks on Monday during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he discussed his relationship with Tinubu, his political experience under former President Muhammadu Buhari, his partnership with APM presidential candidate Seyi Makinde, and the party’s chances in the 2027 contest.
Asked whether Tinubu could be beaten in the election, Daura responded, “Very well,” attributing his confidence to what he called the President’s government committing “several errors.” He said his relationship with Tinubu extends beyond politics, stressing that he knows the President well.
Daura granted the interview shortly after Makinde’s presidential campaign office was unveiled in Abuja. Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), attended the event and described Makinde as qualified to become president, adding that Nigerians should be free to choose their preferred candidate and that political leaders should work together regardless of who ultimately wins the 2027 election.
During the interview, Daura also took aim at what he described as sycophants who surrounded former President Buhari, accusing them of betraying the trust placed in them and taking advantage of his administration.
Daura, who served as DSS Director-General from 2015 to 2018 before his removal by then-Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, was unveiled as Makinde’s running mate at the APM’s national convention in Bauchi in August, replacing Ibrahim Adamu Bala, who had served in the role as a placeholder. Makinde, the Oyo State governor, said Daura was deliberately chosen to help address the country’s security challenges, given his background leading one of Nigeria’s key intelligence agencies.
The APM ticket, pairing a sitting governor with a former intelligence chief, is positioning itself as a security- and governance-focused alternative ahead of the 2027 presidential election, in which the party will face Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress (APC), alongside other opposition contenders including Obi’s NDC.
