With the April 21 deadline for submission of parties’ membership registers and May 30 deadline for party primaries and resolution of disputes in the offing, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused influential figures within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of plotting to foist President Bola Tinubu as the only candidate in the 2027 presidential poll ballot.
In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, in Abuja yesterday, ADC said the purported plot includes pressuring the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Nafiu Bala Gombe, an expelled party member, as the ADC National Chairman. This, the party vowed, would be resisted by all means necessary in defence of democracy.
It maintained that the brinkmanship is a deliberate attempt by elements within the ruling establishment to create confusion within the ADC and weaken what he described as the only viable opposition platform left in the country, just after the crisis of legitimacy has decimated the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and weakened the Labour Party (LP).
ADC maintained that there is no legal basis for any dispute, as its leadership remains firmly under Senator David Mark following a combined meeting of the National Working Committee and National Executive Committee, witnessed by INEC officials, in July 2025.
According to the statement, the attempt to destabilise the opposition ahead of the 2027 elections is allegedly being driven by an APC governor in collaboration with a senior security official based in Abuja, as part of a plot to impose President Tinubu as the sole presidential contender.
ADC described it as “shocking, though not surprising,” that elements in the corridors of power are attempting to use Gombe as an instrument to destabilise the party and forcefully take over its leadership.
The statement added that the objective was “to manufacture confusion within the ADC, sponsor illegitimate leadership claims, and ultimately cripple the only credible opposition platform that Nigerians are increasingly looking to as a genuine alternative, leaving Nigerians no choice in the next general election, despite widespread suffering that the ruling party has brought on the people.”
Abdullahi questioned the desperation driving these anti-democratic forces to impose expelled individuals on the party or manipulate its structures through external political pressure. “Nigeria’s democracy cannot thrive where the ruling party seeks to capture, infiltrate, or manufacture opposition parties for its own political convenience and survival.
“Such actions represent a dangerous assault on democratic pluralism and the constitutional right of Nigerians to freely organise and support credible political alternatives.”
Presidency Dismisses ADC’s Claims as Baseless
Meanwhile, the Presidency wasted no time in dismissing allegations by the ADC that it is orchestrating a one-party system in the country by engineering a crisis in opposition parties so they won’t be able to field candidates to challenge Tinubu in the 2027 election.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described as baseless the claim that the power-that-be was plotting to destabilise the opposition party ahead of the presidential poll, insisting that the issues raised by the ADC were purely internal matters for the party to resolve.
Onanuga said the crisis within the ADC had nothing to do with the ruling party or the President. “This is an ADC party matter. Let the party resolve its internal issues and stop its wild accusations against the APC and President Tinubu.”
He added that the electoral umpire could speak for itself on issues concerning party leadership and recognition. “INEC will speak for itself,” the presidential spokesman said.
PDP Utterly Dysfunctional, No Longer a Political Party – APC Scribe
The National Publicity Secretary of the ruling APC, Felix Morka, has attributed the recent wave of defections from the PDP to what he described as the opposition party’s internal crisis and inability to provide a credible political platform.
Morka made the remark during an appearance on The Morning Show, a programme on Arise TV, while reacting to the growing number of defections from the opposition party to the ruling APC. According to him, the PDP can no longer function effectively as a political party due to internal crises and its inability to provide a credible political platform for its members.
He added that defections to the APC should be seen as an endorsement of the ruling party rather than a sign that Nigeria is drifting toward a one-party state.
“When people decamp to the APC, it is an endorsement of the party. It is a statement that the APC can offer what the opposition cannot offer, and that is not our fault,” he said.
Morka also dismissed concerns that Nigeria is becoming a one-party state, describing such claims as misleading. “When people suggest that the country is turning into a one-party state, that is utterly mischievous because it does not take into account the history and realities of a democratic society as we have in Nigeria,” he said.
Nigeria’s political landscape has seen significant realignments since the 2023 elections. The major opposition party, the PDP, once dominant with over a dozen governors, faces persistent factional disputes and leadership tussles that challenge its influence in several strongholds. This instability has accelerated defections, particularly among some political actors seeking alignment with the ruling party.
Since 2025, multiple PDP governors crossed to the APC, citing the opposition party’s dysfunction and the advantages of joining the ruling party. Recent defections include Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal, whose cross-carpeting pushes the APC’s tally of sitting governors to 31 out of 36 states. This has left the PDP with only two governors (in Oyo and Bauchi states), further weakening its national influence.
PDP Tackles Morka, Describes APC’s Claims as Delusional
However, the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) led by Kabiru Turaki has said Morka was spreading “delusional propaganda”. In a statement, Ini Ememobong, national publicity secretary of the Turaki PDP faction, said Morka’s comment indicates that he is “delusional”.
“Interestingly, reality shows that despite the large-scale defections secured by force and inducement by the APC, Nigerians have consistently rejected the ruling party, which is daily ruining Nigeria and Nigerians,” the statement reads.
“This is evident in the struggle their party has had with membership registration, where in many states, governors have copied the database of state empowerment programmes to populate their state registers. The recent disruption of the City Boys event in Owerri foreshadows what awaits them all over the country.”
According to him, despite the defections, Nigerians have continued to reject the APC, which he accused of worsening the country’s socio-economic situation. Drawing a historical parallel, he cautioned that propaganda had often proved destructive to both nations and those who promote it. The PDP spokesman maintained that the party remained a formidable political platform and would continue to play its role in Nigeria’s democratic process.
