Our Reporter, Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC), has accused President Bola Tinubu-led APC government of entering a state of panic as the 2027 elections draw closer, claiming that recent government pronouncements on food security are politically motivated and driven by fear of the rising influence of the opposition.
The statement, signed by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, Interim National Publicity Secretary of the ADC and National Coalition Spokesperson, was issued in response to a tweet on Saturday by presidential aide Bayo Onanuga. In the tweet, Onanuga stated that the Tinubu administration would begin removing bottlenecks that have hindered its potential, including efforts toward food sovereignty and export.
But the ADC says the statement amounts to a confession that the government had, until now, deliberately failed to act while Nigerians suffered.
“Onanuga didn’t just issue a statement—he issued a confession. A confession that this government had, by design, been sitting on its hands while Nigerians starved,” the statement read.
“Now, under mounting political pressure, they want applause for doing the bare minimum? This is not reform. This is not leadership. This is desperation.”
According to the ADC, what has shaken the Tinubu administration is not the hunger of millions of Nigerians, but the growing strength and unity of the opposition, particularly the rise of the ADC.
“It took the emergence of the ADC and the growing momentum of a united opposition to push this government into action. It wasn’t compassion. It was fear—fear of 2027. Fear that Nigerians have woken up,” the party said.
The opposition party went further, accusing the APC of weaponizing poverty and using hardship as a political strategy.
“Make no mistake, the APC has been deliberately weaponizing poverty. After Bayo Onanuga’s statement, the only conclusion possible is that this government knowingly let Nigerians suffer for political advantage,” it stated.
The ADC raised pressing questions about why the so-called bottlenecks had not been removed earlier, alleging the government delayed action to stage a last-minute propaganda campaign ahead of the elections.
“This is not a government responding to crisis—it’s a government managing optics. Every move is about 2027 calculations,” Abdullahi said.
He described President Tinubu’s administration as a government that has abandoned governance for early campaigning.
“The President is not governing. He is campaigning—two years early—because he knows he’s in trouble. He knows Nigerians have had enough. And the worst part? He is risking the country’s future, all in the name of his re-election bid,” the statement said.
The ADC called on Nigerians to remain vigilant and not fall for what it termed “choreographed press releases and sudden awakenings.”
“This is not governance. This is panic. This is not leadership. This is survival politics,” the statement concluded.
