The African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nigeria’s new political alliance, charged Monday that President Bola Tinubu’s government is in a panic before the 2027 presidential election.
The coalition described the government as starting down a path of “calculated incompetence,” claiming that the administration’s abrupt push for reform was motivated by political panic brought on by the opposition’s increasing power and legitimacy rather than compassion or policy.
Peter Obi, a presidential candidate, made the announcement while criticizing the inefficiencies in the Tinubu administration and emphasizing that, as a Nigerian leader, he would not purchase a N150 billion plane at a time when hundreds of Nigerians were losing their lives.
Professor Babagana Zulum, the governor of Borno State, refuted rumors in several internet media outlets that he would lead five other governors to defect to the ADC. Zulum swore allegiance to the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is currently in power.
Additionally, the former Police Affairs Minister, Hon. Many Yobe State members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) purportedly came to an agreement with Adamu Waziri to defect to the ADC.
In a similar vein, the Labour Party (LP) in Benue State’s Ogbadibo Local Government Area formally disbanded as the ADC.
However, two South-South organizations couldn’t agree on whether they supported ADC. The South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) expressed concerns about ADC and its new promoters, while the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola announced support for Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the former Interior Minister and current National Secretary of ADC.
However, the party disputed the recent revelation by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, that the government intended to eliminate obstacles to food security and export in a statement issued by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC’s acting National Publicity Secretary.
Abdullahi questioned why the coalition’s formation was necessary to get the Tinubu administration to begin considering ways to provide food for Nigerians.
According to the party, the government would have continued its deliberate disregard for the suffering of the Nigerian people if not for the pressure that the successful unveiling of the opposition alliance last week put on it.
ADC stated, “Bayo Onanuga didn’t just make a statement; he made a confession when he tweeted in front of the world on Saturday that, going forward, all obstacles to ‘the realisation of the Tinubu administration’s potential’ would be removed to enable food sovereignty and export.”
“An admission that this government intentionally sat on its hands while Nigerians went hungry.” Now that political pressure is increasing, they expect praise for taking the bare minimum of action? Reform is not what this is. This isn’t being a leader. This administration, besieged by its own shortcomings, is fighting for its life.
“Let’s be clear: this government was forced to act by the rise of the ADC and the increasing strength of a unified opposition. They were moved by terror rather than the hunger of hundreds of millions of Nigerians. Fear about the elections in 2027. Fear that the people of Nigeria have awakened. Fear that the APC and the Nigerian people would face off in a landslide election in 2027 if the opposition is unified.
“There is no denying that the APC has been purposefully using poverty as a weapon. The only inference that can be drawn from Bayo Onanuga’s declaration that they would no longer put off eliminating the obstacles that had impeded food security is that the administration purposefully stood by and watched Nigerians go hungry during the past two years.
“Every Nigerian needs to start posing the obvious queries to the Tinubu administration.”
The statement questioned why, as millions went hungry and businesses failed, the obstacles Onanuga mentioned in his press statement could not have been resolved sooner.
It questioned, “Was it so they could put on a propaganda-driven, last-minute show nearer the 2027 elections? There is a trend here. This is a tactic. This is a political machine controlling optics, not a government responding to a pressing national emergency. All of their actions have been motivated by political calculations in anticipation of 2027. Let your eyes shine, Nigerians.
The ADC insisted that the president was not in charge, emphasizing that he was only campaigning two years ahead of schedule because he was aware of his problems.
“He knows Nigerians have had enough,” the message continued. The worst part, too. For the sake of his reelection campaign, he is putting the future of the nation at stake.
“Onanuga’s declaration is about politics and 2027, not food security or economic diplomacy.”
ADC insisted that “this is not governance” and urged Nigerians to resist being influenced by staged news releases and unexpected awakenings. This is a desperate situation.
Obi: As the leader of Nigeria, I refuse to purchase a N150 billion jet as people starve to death.
As a Nigerian leader, Obi emphasized that he would not purchase a N150 billion plane when hundreds of Nigerians perished from starvation. He denounced the waste in the Tinubu administration.
Speaking on Channels Television last night, Obi reaffirmed that he would not borrow money to consume, as the current administration was doing. He asked the government to tell Nigerians how the money it saved by eliminating fuel subsidies was being used.
“You should be prepared to die if your people are dying,” Obi stated. That’s your job for sure. Why should the government have security if its citizens are dying? In the air, who is keeping you safe? Everyone dies there if you crash.
He questioned Tinubu’s reasoning for purchasing a president jet.
Obi claimed that without necessarily burdening Nigerians, he would have eliminated the corruption connected to the gasoline subsidy if he had been elected president. He criticized the “disorganized manner” of the Tinubu administration’s actions.
“It’s all about organization,” said the former LP presidential contender. If there is corruption involved, it must be eliminated first, followed by the elimination of the actual subsidy, economic organization, a gradual handling of what remains, and the realization of the alternative by the public.
“Do you know what this government said when it cut subsidies? They stated that the goal was to cease borrowing for subsidies. Compared to the governments of Jonathan and Buhari, this one has borrowed more money. By the time Buhari was departing, we owed over N80 trillion.
We are nearly N180 trillion today. We haven’t gained anything. As a government, is that what you want? No. These are among the things I wish to alter. We need to enact legislation requiring all borrowing to be used for investments in vital areas of development rather than for personal consumption.
Instead of commissioning bus stops as the president has been doing, Obi said he would make sure that Nigeria’s electrical supply was improved gradually if elected. He explained that those are some of the things he is willing to borrow to enhance.
In contrast to what he said Tinubu was doing to weaken the opposition, he also pledged to strengthen the opposition political parties in his capacity as president, emphasizing that this is a means of guaranteeing the survival of democracy.
Zulum Rejects Rumors of Defection and Confirms Allegiance to the APC
In certain media outlets, Zulum denied rumors that he intended to bring five more governors to the opposition ADC.
In a statement released over the weekend, Zulum’s spokesperson, Dauda Iliya, called the rumor “baseless and unfounded, fabricated by unscrupulous elements seeking relevance.”
He reaffirmed his unwavering support for the APC, which is in power.
In the statement, the governor added, “We have learned of a false and malicious social media report that is making the rounds in some places, claiming that I and five other governors intend to defect from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).”
This is completely untrue and just exists in the sponsors’ minds. They are critics who haven’t done anything significant to advance Nigeria or Borno State. It is a quintessential case of politically driven, low-cost speculation intended only to divert our attention and incite needless political conflict.
“My commitment to the welfare and advancement of Borno State is my only focus, and I remain steadfast in my support of the APC. I implore the decent people of Borno and the society at large to ignore this falsehood. Cheap politics are not for us. The admirable task of repairing and growing our beloved state has taken up all of our time.
“I urge the public and media outlets to confirm information from reliable official sources and to disregard the desperate fabrications of those who use disinformation to gain relevance,” the governor stated.
“Under the banner of our great party, the APC, we remain steadfast in our commitment to serving Borno State.”
Waziri, the former police minister, and other PDP members move to Yobe State to join the ADC.
Former Police Affairs Minister, Hon. According to reports, Adamu Maina Waziri and a number of PDP members came to an agreement to join the ADC.
Having won the party’s governorship ticket four years in a row (1999, 2003, 2007, and 2015), Waziri was perhaps the most powerful political figure in the Yobe APC since its founding in 1999. He was spotted with coalition members. He lost against the now-deceased Usman Albishir in the 2011 primary.
In the most recent presidential election, he defeated Tinubu in the state, reportedly with the support of more than half of the party’s members.
According to several locals in the state capital of Damaturu, ADC was spotted on Sunday in a display of power as supporters circled the town in a convoy of cars while loud music played to commemorate the party’s founding.
The PDP structure, according to lawmaker Abubakar Sani, is still in place for the time being, but “it was only the former Minister of Police Affairs, Hon. Adamu Maina Waziri, the state’s party head, and his followers/supporters who switched to the ADC. Nonetheless, the PDP still has the Damagum-led party organization.
The party said in a statement yesterday that the PDP structure has not disintegrated into ADC in response to the reported mass movement inside the PDP rank in the state.
“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Yobe State has categorically dismissed reports suggesting the collapse or weakening of the party following the departure of one of its former chieftains, Adamu Maina Waziri,” said the statement, which was signed by Salihu Baba, the PDP’s Yobe State publicity secretary.
The reports, according to the PDP, were false, baseless, and an intentional attempt to mislead the people and sabotage the party’s renewed vigor.
“The Yobe State PDP chapter and its entire structure from wards, local government, and state remains intact and waxing stronger and has no desire whatsoever to join any coalition,” the party stated. We do, however, welcome new members who are interested in joining the celebration, and our doors remain open.
The Labour Party’s Structure Disintegrates into ADC
In Benue State’s Ogbadibo Local Government Area, the Labour Party (LP) was formally dissolved and merged into the ADC. On Saturday, July 5, at a broader stakeholders’ meeting, this was announced.
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With well-known leaders, LP members, and grassroots supporters pledging their unwavering support for ADC, the development demonstrated a realignment in the local political landscape.
Party insiders said that weeks of deliberation and consideration of the current situation in the country led to the decision.
The mass defection, according to a statement released following the meeting, was a “bold and strategic decision” driven by a common will to save Nigeria from the ongoing suffering and poor governance under the federal government led by the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“A stakeholder who chose to remain anonymous said.” “After careful consideration and group determination, the Labour Party organization in Ogbadibo LGA was collapsed into the ADC. We think the ADC provides a more progressive, open, and people-focused political option.
South-South Groups Exchange Attacks Regarding ADC Support
The South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) and the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola exchanged criticism over their support for ADC.
Yesterday, the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola announced its support for Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the former Interior Minister and current National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), for joining forces with former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Nasir El-Rufai, Chibuike Amaechi, and other members of the new opposition party to oppose Tinubu’s reelection in 2027.
According to a statement released in Benin City by the group’s convener, Mr. Sunday Oleghe, Aregbesola had the necessary skills to guide the party to victory.
Oleghe said that throughout his tenure as Osun State’s governor and interior minister, he introduced numerous changes that are still considered legacy measures.
“With Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola participating in this history-making process, there has never been a better moment for the coalition of political heavyweights to unite in order to preserve our nation and democracy,” he said.
During his tenure as governor of Osun State, Aregbesola brought Sukuk projects to Nigeria, despite opposition from the Christian Association of Nigeria, which claimed that it was Islamizing the country. Numerous projects have been financed with Sukuk loans during the most recent government. In Sukuk, he witnessed what many others did not perceive at the time.
“As governor, he established school feeding, ensuring that the food for schoolchildren was produced by the state’s farmers, which also became a source of empowerment for the state’s farmers,” the group added of Aregbesola. This school feeding program is currently being implemented by the federal government and a number of other states.
However, the South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) emphasized that the will of the people and a tradition that represented the nation’s federal character and democratic principles, rather than the individual aspirations of a select few, controlled Nigeria’s political trajectory.
In a statement released by its chairman, John Carlkson, the group questioned the goals and feasibility of this specific coalition in advance of the general election in 2027, while acknowledging the democratic freedom of political players to establish alliances.
“Although we respect the freedom of individuals and organizations to form political coalitions, we must voice our serious concerns about the intentions and sustainability of this specific coalition,” Carlkson said.
The excessive ambition at the core of this new partnership seems to put individual benefit ahead of the welfare of the Nigerian people as a whole. It is critical to acknowledge that the coalition is not equipped to defeat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 elections.
“Nigeria’s political landscape is a complex system governed by historical precedents and the will of the people; it is not just a chessboard for the ambitions of a select few.”
