The Presidency has dismissed opposition accusations of weaponizing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to coerce defections into the APC, insisting on December 15, 2025, that high-profile switches by governors and lawmakers like Rivers' Siminalayi Fubara stem from voluntary recognition of President Tinubu's reform successes, not intimidation.
Special Adviser Bayo Onanuga labeled critics' outcry as "scapegoating by a dying political party," noting constitutional freedoms of association and questioning why past PDP mass defections never sparked democracy alarms, while emphasizing EFCC's independence in pursuing pre-Tinubu cases that aided Nigeria's FATF grey list exit.
Opposition figures, including ADC's David Mark and ex-APC chair John Odigie-Oyegun, decried a pattern of selective probes shielding APC allies while targeting rivals ahead of 2027, demanding audits from 2015; the Presidency urged accountability over "baseless narratives" trivializing anti-corruption gains.