₦airaland Forum

As political activities gradually gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general elections, the African Democratic Congress, ADC, is facing a tough time.

The ADC, once touted by some political observers as a potential rallying platform for disenchanted blocs, is grappling with internal and external headwinds.

From electoral disappointment and arrests, the road to 2027 appears increasingly steep.

FCT election setbacks

DAILY POST reported how the recent FCT area council elections exposed structural weaknesses within the ADC’s political machinery. Despite high-decibel campaigns and visible media engagement, the party failed to translate its visibility into electoral victories across key councils.

DAILY POST reports that for a party seeking to anchor a broader opposition movement, the FCT setback may serve as an early warning signal.

Analysts argue that while the ADC attempted to position itself as a credible alternative to the dominant parties, its grassroots mobilization fell short.

Some political watchers had noted that the FCT council elections offered the ADC an opportunity to test its readiness for 2027.

However, the outcome raised concerns about its organizational depth, voter penetration and coalition-building capacity.

Commenting about the FCT elections, veteran journalist and former presidential aide, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the ADC failed to translate its campaign efforts into electoral success in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, area council elections.

Abati made the remarks on Monday while speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show.

He said the outcome of the elections in Abuja showed that the contests had largely been decided, noting that political parties must begin to reassess their strategies ahead of future polls.

“We just hope that all the stakeholders, including the ADC that put up shows in Abuja and got nothing, will learn from this and all the parties will strategize.

“What that will imply in the future is something we cannot say,” Abati said.

DAILY POST also reported that former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Chidi Odinkalu, criticised opposition political parties and leaders over their handling of the FCT elections, describing them as ineffective and disorganised.

Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television on Monday, Odinkalu said the opposition failed to demonstrate leadership at a critical moment.

Odinkalu described the opposition as “an utter disgrace,” stating that the current political climate reflects a lack of seriousness among parties expected to provide checks on the ruling government.

“It’s difficult to speak to the ineptitude of political opposition in Nigeria. They are not serious.

“And I think anybody who looks at the system, has got to say at the moment, there is absolutely no opposition,” Odinkalu said.

El-Rufai’s incarceration by ICPC, EFCC, DSS

Last week, the political climate in the country intensified following the arrest and detention of former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, by anti-corruption and security agencies including the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the Department of State Services, DSS.

Although the ruling All Progressives Congress maintains that such actions are part of ongoing investigations and institutional mandates, opposition voices have described the move as politically charged.

Some supporters have also argued that the timing raises questions, especially as alignments and realignments intensify ahead of 2027.

Although highly controversial, El-Rufai is seen by many as one of the key leaders of the ADC capable of turning the heat on President Bola Tinubu’s reelection.

His arrest has since unsettled the party.

DAILY POST reported that former vice President Atiku Abubakar on Tuesday warned that the health and welfare of Nasir El-Rufai is a matter of grave concern to his family, friends, and associates.

Atiku’s warning to the government came after it was reported that El-Rufai bled through the nose over the weekend.

However, in a statement via X on Tuesday, Atiku said that the Federal Government owes Nigerians clarity.

According to Atiku, “the government has a constitutional duty to guarantee El-Rufai’s safety, dignity, access to medical care, and access to his family and legal representatives.

“Reports that he suffered a nosebleed while family members were allegedly denied access are deeply troubling and unacceptable in a democracy.

If the authorities cannot guarantee his health and fundamental rights, the lawful and humane course of action is to grant him bail without delay. If anything happens to El-Rufai, this government will be held accountable.”

Meanwhile, DAILY POST recalls that weeks ago, former Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, Abubakar Malami, also a chieftain of the ADC, was equally arrested and detained by the EFCC.

Enugu govt’s N150m fee for political campaign ads

In what has generated widespread discussion, the Enugu State Structures for Signage and Advertisement Agency (ENSSAA) on Monday announced a mandatory N150 million permit fee for political campaign advertising ahead of the 2026 and 2027 elections.

The policy, introduced under the administration of Governor Peter Mbah, has been defended as a regulatory measure aimed at maintaining order and ensuring compliance with state advertising laws.

However, opposition parties view the fee as prohibitive, arguing that it disproportionately affects smaller parties like the ADC.

DAILY POST reported that the Enugu State chapter of the ADC kicked against the mandatory fee.

The party described the campaign advertising permit fee as unlawful, unconstitutional and undemocratic.

ADC accused the ruling APC in Enugu State of inventing the fee to shut out the opposition parties from contesting the coming elections in the state.

In a press release signed by Paul Anigbogu on behalf of Enugu ADC Media Team, the opposition party accused the state Government of trying to usurp the powers of the federal government by imposing the “illegal” advertising permit fee, in total contravention of the Constitution of Nigeria.

We totally reject this fee and will not hesitate to challenge it in court, if the state government fails to rescind the illegal and unconstitutional financial obstruction placed on the way of political parties and candidates vying for local government election and general elections in Enugu State,” part of the statement read.

Alleged assassination attempt on Peter Obi

On Tuesday, tensions escalated further with reports of an alleged assassination attempt on former presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi.

Dr Yunusa Tanko, National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, issued a statement from Abuja confirming the attack.

Tanko said the incident occurred shortly after the formal declaration of senior lawyer, Olumide Akpata as a member of the ADC.

Armed men, he said, trailed the group from the ADC Secretariat directly to Chief Odigie-Oyegun’s private residence, where they shot at the gate and several vehicles parked within the compound.

“Peter Obi and the leadership of the ADC are under siege and attack in Benin, Edo State.

They shot at the gate and destroyed several vehicles in what appears to be a survived assassination attempt on our lives. Democracy is in danger,” Tanko said wrote.

Shortly after the incident was made public, many supporters of the party took to social media, describing the development as alarming and symptomatic of rising political hostility.

DAILY POST reports that Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, now in ADC, whose strong showing at the polls and subsequent legal battle kept him at the centre of Nigerian opposition politics, remains one of the most recognisable faces of the movement challenging the current administration.

Newly signed 2026 Electoral Act

Adding another dimension to the unfolding drama is the newly signed 2026 Electoral Act, which introduced both manual and electronic transmission of election results.

The opposition figures claim that the proviso provided in the act for manual transmission of election results may inadvertently favor rigging and manipulation of results.

In a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party described the President’s approval of the amendment as a setback to credible elections in the country.

According to the opposition party, the amendment introduces ambiguity and grants excessive discretion in the collation and transmission of election results, which it warned could weaken public confidence in future elections.

The ADC also expressed concern that the absence of firm guarantees for electronic transparency could heighten tension during elections, as citizens might feel compelled to remain at polling units to safeguard their votes.

As a duly constituted political party in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, following the actions taken by President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday, 18th February, the ADC affirms in the strongest and clearest possible terms that we are ready, willing, and prepared to defend the sanctity of Nigeria’s democracy using every constitutional and lawful means available to us.

“We will mobilise Nigerians toward vigilance, toward lawful participation, and toward unity in defence of their constitutional rights,” the party said.

Nigeria lacks coordinated opposition — Analyst

Meanwhile, a public affairs analyst and communication expert at Peaceland University, Enugu, Nduka Odo, has said Nigeria currently lacks a structured and coordinated opposition capable of challenging the ruling APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Odo made the assertion during an interview with DAILY POST on Tuesday, stating that recent political developments in the country had validated his earlier position that there was no formidable opposition in place.

According to him, isolated voices cannot be described as a political opposition, noting that effective opposition required force, momentum and coordination.

He described the ADC as a “sketch” of what an opposition party should be, pointing to its performance in the recent Abuja elections as evidence that the party was yet to fully establish itself as a credible alternative.

Odo said the outcome of the Abuja polls should serve as an early warning to the ADC to reorganize before 2027.

The analyst also criticised the party’s response to the passage of the controversial electoral act amendment bill, arguing that the ADC failed to take meaningful action.

Odo said that if the APC were in opposition, it would have mobilised protests at the National Assembly and escalated the issue to international media platforms such as CNN and BBC, accusing the ruling party of attempting to manipulate the 2027 elections.

He further stated that the ADC appears divided and lacks internal cohesion, alleging that its leaders do not seem united or fully committed to building a strong opposition platform.

Odo said: “Recent activities in the country have proven what I’ve said somewhere else. There’s no opposition in Nigeria right now.

“Lone voices don’t constitute political opposition. That’s what the likes of Peter Obi are today. An opposition needs force, momentum, coordination.

“ADC is currently a sketch of what an opposition should be. This showed up in the recent Abuja elections. It was an early warning to ADC to put its acts together before 2027.

“The fact that ADC did nothing worthwhile when the lawmakers passed the obviously controversial electoral act amendment tells you that the party still has a long way to go. We all watched what Benjamin Kalu, the deputy speaker, did, ignoring house members who called for order.

The members wanted to know what was in the bill, but he kept going. If APC was in the opposition, they’d have besieged the House of Reps.

“They would still be protesting against the passage of the electoral act. They would be in CNN and BBC, narrating how the ruling party has perfected a means to glitch’ 2027 election.

“But ADC is not doing any of that. It feels like ADC hasn’t really formed into a single united body. They don’t seem yet to know what to agree on. The leaders don’t seem to trust each other. It seems they all have one leg in and one leg out.

And APC understands this. I once predicted that the PDP would die before the 2027 election. It’s almost done. My only shocker is that of LP, which didn’t truly survive the scourge of Lamidi Apapa.

“A similar scourge seems to await ADC. And I saw the fingers of the ruling party in the ailment of LP. I also see their fingers in the jaundiced stand of ADC.

“The continued gulping of the opposition by the ruling party, through whatever strategy, is dangerous to our nascent democracy. You can’t make every elected leader jump over to the ruling party.

“The members of the legislature, the primary arm of the government, responsible for checking the excesses of the executive, singing the sycophantic anthem of the president, on the floor of legislation, in place of the National Anthem, it’s absurd and anti-democratic.

“Oppositionsim is an ideal that goes beyond the quest to takeover power. We need structured opposition back for sanity to return to governance in Nigeria.”

Boladogailese:
Can Adc stand the giant opposition party?

Buhari4dullard:
We thought Buhari was bad, Tinubu is 10x worse in every aspect.
Opposition can't even campaign 🫤

emkz:
I do not see any bad omen with ADC instigated by external factors. What I see is a party that is globally and locally prepared to lose the 2027 elections and elections between now and then.

Some pointers:

(1) Who is the ADC chairman in Lagos state? Edo state? Adamawa state?
(2) Who was the campaign director of ADC AMAC election in Abuja?
(3) Who advised ADC not to have polling unit agents in some polling units?
(4) Why was ADC focused on AMAC and chairmanship/vice chairmanship, forgetting there were 5 other area councils?
(5) Since Sunday, the ADC spokesman has not issued a statement accepting the defeat of their candidate in AMAC. Only Obidients are issuing statements.

ADC is currently disorganized!

Money alone does not win elections, mobilization does. Ireti Kingibe and Dr Mo failed to mobilize voters in their own locations. How did they expect to win?

Some people are mentioning arrests of opposition leaders. Didn't someone have a corruption case against him and was out of the country? Didn't that same someone "casually" say he was listening to government calls? Didn't that same someone demolish houses of those opposed to him when he served as governor? Didn't that same someone have a judgement against him asking him to pay almost 1 billion naira for ?persecuting some critics? What has that got to do with 2027?

As for the amendment to the electoral act, while they were fixated on electronic transmission, they forgot one important detail: There is no more delegate voting. Parties are to choose candidates by consensus or by direct primaries. If ADC Edo cannot even agree on internal leadership, how can they agree on candidates or mode of primaries? Expect a litany of court cases against ADC from ADC members.

ADC's problems are self-inflicted. Majority of those in ADC have corruption cases against them and are looking for political shelter to avoid prosecution. Anyone who wants to be a politician should open himself up for scrutiny. ADC also has people who lost out of the 2023 permutations.

ADC is A Disgruntled Conglomerate.

Finally, ALL the opposition parties and opposition politicians are currently very weak, weaker since 1999. They cannot confront a united APC. Those promoting ADC need to provide leadership and build the party. There is too much internal strife that would ultimately hand power to APC in 2027 and beyond.

SlavaUkraini:
https://dailypost.ng/2026/02/25/2027-bad-omen-for-adc-as-opposition-faces-arrests-campaign-restrictions-electoral-setbacks/

SlavaUkraini:
https://dailypost.ng/2026/02/25/2027-bad-omen-for-adc-as-opposition-faces-arrests-campaign-restrictions-electoral-setbacks/

anonimi:
“The worst illiterate is the political illiterate, he doesn’t hear, doesn’t speak, nor participates in the political events.

He doesn’t know the cost of life, the price of the bean, of the fish, of the flour, of the rent, of the shoes and of the medicine, all depends on political decisions. The political illiterate is so stupid that he is proud and swells his chest saying that he hates politics.

The slowpoke doesn’t know that, from his political ignorance is born the prostitute, the abandoned child, and the worst thieves of all, the bad politician, corrupted and flunky of the national and multinational companies.”

― Bertolt Brecht

Racoon:
The ranking placed Nigeria in 186th position, only after Haiti, among 187 countries of the world. Nigeria is the second country in the world with the lowest voter turnout, worse than war-ravaged Afghanistan and Libya, a new ranking by Picodi has shown.

The ranking placed Nigeria in 186th position, only after Haiti, among 187 countries of the world. Nigeria also ranked worst in Africa. Nigeria’s low voter turnout

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how Nigeria recorded a new low in voter turnout during the last general elections. With a national turnout of 29 per cent, a Premium Times analysis showed that the last election had the lowest participation rate in the country’s six decades of independence.

It further revealed that of the 93.4 million registered voters this year, 87.2 million people collected their Permanent Voters Card and the total number of actual voters on election day was only 24.9 million..The winner of the election, Bola Tinubu, had less than nine million votes, roughly 10 per cent of the total eligible voters.

Another analysis by this newspaper revealed that all the 18 candidates in Nigeria’s February elections received only 27.55 per cent of the total eligible votes.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/634921-voter-turnout-nigeria-ranks-worlds-second-worst-nation-report.html?utm_campaign=twitter&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitter

AMINDA:
At this point, no sane person can deny the Paul Biya tendencies but time is a gentleman.

They never hated Sani Abacha, they were just envious of him.

anonimi:
My dad, victim of complex conspiracy – Kola Abiola

What role did Bola Tinubu play in all of these?

At the very beginning, he was part of the Yar’Adua PF group from Jos. He was a senator then, and as far as the group went, we related. The crisis started post-election. When Abacha came, one of the things he wanted to do was to be the administrator for Lagos.

That is Tinubu?

Yes. I am sure you have seen pictures of him and my dad. He was hoping that there would be civilian administrators like we had under IBB but Abacha said no, that he was going to have military administrators. So he (Tinubu) said okay, in that case, can I be a deputy administrator? But Abacha said that there wouldn’t be deputies. Then he wanted the post of a commissioner.

He wanted to be a commissioner?

Yes. Then it was a choice between him and someone very close to Jakande who has passed on now. I can’t remember his name, but because Babagana was already in the government, that guy was picked as commissioner. But really, Senator Tinubu had lost out already.

Was Tinubu very close to MKO?

Yes, he was close enough. He and Adeniyi Adele, a very good guy, were close to my father. In fact, Adeniyi was closer to my father and more dedicated to the process than anyone of them. When my documentary comes out, you will see Tinubu’s take on issues. So once he lost out, automatically, he became a NADECO member and Adeniyi was incarcerated.

https://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2019/06/12/my-dad-victim-of-complex-conspiracy-kola-abiola/