Ahead of the 2027 presidential election, Nigeria’s new political alliance, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), charged Wednesday that President Bola Tinubu’s government is in a panic.
The alliance described the administration’s abrupt push for reform as the result of political panic brought on by the opposition’s increasing power and legitimacy, rather than compassion or policy. It called the government’s actions “calculated incompetence.”
As he attacked the inefficiencies in the Tinubu administration, presidential candidate Peter Obi made the announcement, 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.
The governor of Borno State, Professor Babagana Zulum, however, denied rumors in several online media outlets that he will lead five other governors in defecting to the ADC. To the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Zulum swore allegiance.
Another development is that the previous Police Affairs Minister, Hon. Many members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Yobe State are said to have made preparations with Adamu Waziri to defect to the ADC.
Likewise, in Benue State’s Ogbadibo Local Government Area, the whole Labour Party (LP) hierarchy formally disbanded to form the ADC.
Two South-South organizations, however, divided on whether they supported ADC. While the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola expressed support for Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the former Interior Minister and current National Secretary of ADC, the South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) expressed disapproval of ADC and its new promoters.
However, in a statement issued by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC’s acting national publicity secretary, the party disputed the recent revelation by Mr. Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, that the government intended to eliminate obstacles to export and food security.
Abdullahi questioned why the Tinubu administration didn’t begin considering ways to provide food for the Nigerian people until the coalition came into being.
The party claimed that if the government hadn’t been under pressure following the opposition coalition’s successful unveiling last week, it would have continued its deliberate disregard for the suffering of the Nigerian people.
When Bayo Onanuga announced on Saturday that all obstacles to “the realisation of the Tinubu administration’s potential” will be eliminated going forward in order to facilitate food sovereignty and export, he didn’t merely make a statement; rather, he made a confession, according to ADC.
“An admission that this government intentionally overlooked the famine that Nigerians were experiencing.” Now, they demand praise for doing the bare minimum in response to increasing political pressure? This isn’t reform. Leadership is not what this is. An administration that has been besieged by its own shortcomings is attempting to survive.
One thing should be made clear: this government was forced to act by the rise of the ADC and the increasing strength of a unified opposition. Hundreds of millions of Nigerians were moved by dread rather than hunger. anxiety about the elections in 2027. Fear of Nigerians waking up. Fear that the Nigerian people and the APC will face off in a straight-up election in 2027 if the opposition is unified.
Undoubtedly, the APC has been purposefully using poverty as a weapon. The government has purposefully sat on its hands and watched Nigerians starve for the past two years, according to Bayo Onanuga’s declaration that they would no longer put off eliminating obstacles that have impeded food security.
“Nigerians need to start asking the obvious questions of the Tinubu government.”
As businesses failed and millions went hungry, the statement questioned why the obstacles Onanuga mentioned in his press conference could not have been eased sooner.
Was it so they could put on a last-minute, propaganda-driven show nearer the 2027 elections, it wondered? This is a trend. It’s a tactic. This administration is a political machine that controls optics, not a response to a pressing national emergency. Prior to 2027, every action they have taken has been motivated by political calculation. I want Nigerians to shine their eyes.
According to ADC, the president is running two years early because he knows he is in trouble and is not governing.
According to the statement, “He is aware that Nigerians have had enough.” And the worst of it. In order to win reelection, he is putting the future of the nation at danger.
“This is about politics and 2027, not about food security or economic diplomacy,” Onanuga said.
“This is not governance,” the ADC urged Nigerians, warning them not to be influenced by hypnotized press releases and abrupt awakenings. It’s desperate.
Obi: I will not purchase a N150 billion jet as a Nigerian leader while others starve to death.
Obi denounced the waste in the Tinubu administration and emphasized that, as a Nigerian leader, he would not purchase a N150 billion plane at a time when hundreds of Nigerians were starving to death.
Speaking Sunday night on Channels Television, Obi reaffirmed that he would not borrow money for personal use, as the current administration did. He asked Nigerians to know where the government was spending the money it had saved by eliminating fuel subsidies.
Obi stated, “You should be prepared to die if your people are dying.” You have that task. As the government, why should you have security if your citizens are dying? Who is keeping you safe in the air? Everyone perishes in the crash.
He questioned the reasoning for Tinubu’s president jet purchase.
If he had been president, Obi claimed, he would have eliminated the corruption around the gasoline subsidy without putting a hardship on Nigerians. The Tinubu administration was criticized by him for its “disorganized” actions.
According to the previous LP presidential candidate, “organization is key.” If corruption is involved, it must be eliminated first, followed by the elimination of the actual subsidy, economic organization, a phased approach to dealing with what remains, and the encouragement of individuals to consider other options.
Are you aware of what this government claimed when it eliminated subsidies? According to them, it was to cease borrowing for subsidies. The current administration has taken on more debt than both the Jonathan and Buhari administrations. We had nearly N80 trillion in debt as Buhari was departing.
We are about N180 trillion as of this now. We’ve got nothing to show. As a government, do you want that? No. Among the things I wish to alter are these. A law requiring that all borrowing be used for investments in vital areas of development rather than for personal consumption needs to be passed.
If elected, Obi said he would make sure that Nigeria’s energy supply was improved gradually. He explained that he is willing to borrow money to make improvements rather than constructing bus stops as the president has been doing.
As president, he also pledged to fortify the opposition political parties, in contrast to Tinubu’s purported efforts to undermine them, emphasizing that this is a means of guaranteeing democracy’s survival.
Zulum denies the rumor of defection and declares his loyalty to the APC.
Zulum denied rumors in several media outlets that he intended to bring five more governors to the opposition ADC.
Dauda Iliya, Zulum’s spokesperson, said in a statement over the weekend that the rumor was untrue and a fabricated story by dishonest people looking for attention.
His unwavering devotion to the ruling APC was reaffirmed.
“We have learned of a false and malicious social media report that is making the rounds in some places, claiming that I, along with five other governors, intend to defect from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC),” the governor stated in the statement.
Its sponsors’ imaginations are the only places where this is true. They are critics who haven’t done anything productive to help Nigeria or Borno State advance. It is a prime example of speculative, politically driven speculation that is done only to divert our attention and incite needless political conflict.
“I remain steadfast in my commitment to the APC and exclusively focused on the advancement and well-being of Borno State.” I implore Borno’s good people and the public at large to ignore this hoax. We don’t have time for low-quality politics. Rebuilding and developing our beloved state is a wonderful job that has taken up all of our time.
“I urge media outlets and the public to confirm information from reliable official sources and to disregard the desperate fabrications of those seeking relevance through disinformation,” the governor stated.
“We are steadfast in our resolve to serve Borno State under the auspices of the APC, our magnificent party.”
Former Yobe State Police Minister Waziri and Other PDP Members Join ADC
Police Affairs’ former minister, Hon. Adamu Maina Waziri allegedly came to an agreement with a number of PDP members to join the ADC.
Waziri, who was spotted with coalition members, was arguably the most powerful politician in the Yobe APC since its founding in 1999. He had won the party’s governorship ticket four times in a row (1999, 2003, 2007, and 2015). Usman Albishir, who is now deceased, defeated him in the 2011 primary.
He is thought to have the support of more than half of the party’s members, which helped him defeat Tinubu in the state during the most recent presidential election.
ADC was spotted on Sunday in a display of power as supporters drove through the town in a convoy of cars blasting loud music to commemorate the party’s founding, according to some locals of Damaturu, the state capital.
Politician Abubakar Sani, however, stated that the PDP structure was still in place for the time being, but “it was only the former Minister of Police Affairs, Hon. The state’s party leader, Adamu Maina Waziri, and his followers/supporters who switched to the ADC. However, the PDP still has the party structure that Damagum’s supporters control.
In response to the purported mass movement within the state’s PDP ranks, the party said in a statement yesterday that the PDP structure has not collapsed into ADC.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Yobe State has absolutely rejected rumors indicating the party’s collapse or weakening after one of its former chieftains, Adamu Maina Waziri, left the party, according to a statement signed by Salihu Baba, the PDP’s Yobe State publicity secretary.
The PDP characterized the reports as false, baseless, and a calculated effort to mislead the public and sabotage the party’s renewed vigor.
According to the party, “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 statement read. Our doors are open, though, and we invite anyone who is interested to join the party.
The Labour Party’s structure collapses into the ADC
Benue State’s Ogbadibo Local Government Area saw the official dissolution of the Labour Party (LP) and its integration into the ADC. This was revealed on Saturday, July 5, at a broader stakeholders’ meeting.
The declarations of ADC’s full support by LP’s top officials, members, and grassroots supporters demonstrated a realignment in the region’s political environment.
Party sources claim that the decision was made following weeks of deliberation and consideration of the status of the country.
The mass defection was a “bold and strategic decision,” according to a statement released following the conference, 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).
The stakeholder chose to remain anonymous. In Ogbadibo LGA, the Labour Party structure was collapsed into the ADC as a consequence of careful consideration and group determination. The ADC, in our opinion, provides a more progressive, open, and people-focused political alternative.
South-South Organizations Exchange Attacks on ADC Support
Support for ADC sparked attacks between the South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) and the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola.
Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, the former Interior Minister and current National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), was endorsed yesterday by the South-South Coalition for Aregbesola 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.
The group’s convener, Mr. Sunday Oleghe, stated in a statement released in Benin City that Aregbesola has the necessary skills to guide the party to victory.
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As Osun State’s governor and interior minister, Oleghe claimed to have introduced numerous changes that are still considered legacy measures today.
“There has never been a better moment for the alliance of political leaders to unite in order to preserve our nation and democracy, and with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola playing a role in this history-making process,” he said.
While serving as governor of Osun State, Aregbesola brought Sukuk projects to Nigeria, which the Christian Association of Nigeria opposed on the grounds that it was Islamizing the country. During the most recent administration, a number of projects have been financed by Sukuk loans. He observed what many others in Sukuk did not notice at the time.
Regarding Aregbesola, the group added, “He established school feeding as governor, ensuring that the food for the schoolchildren was produced by the state’s farmers, which also became a source of empowerment for the state’s farmers.” The federal government and a number of states have now embraced this school feeding program.
However, the South-South Youth Amalgamation (SSYA) emphasized that the will of the people and a tradition that reflected the nation’s federal character and democratic ideals drove Nigeria’s political course rather than the individual aspirations of a select few.
Ahead of the general election in 2027, the group questioned the motivations and feasibility of this specific coalition, while acknowledging the democratic right of political players to create alliances, in a statement issued by its chairman, John Carlkson.
Carlkson said, “We must voice our serious worries about the objectives and sustainability of this specific coalition, even as we respect the right of people and groups to seek political partnerships.
An excessive amount of ambition that seems to put individual benefit ahead of the general welfare of Nigerians is at the core of this new alliance. The coalition does not have the capacity to defeat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 elections, and this must be acknowledged.
“Nigeria’s political landscape is a complex system under the influence of historical precedents and popular will, not just a chessboard for the aspirations of a select few.”
