ADC accuses Nigerian government of repressing opposition ahead of 2027
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on ThisDay
The ADC Presidential Campaign Council says Bola Tinubu will lose the 2027 presidential election despite pressure and accuses the ruling party of using the judiciary and security agencies against the opposition. Its spokesman Kola Ologbondiyan cites deadly attacks on activists in several states, according to This Day.
The Presidential Campaign Council of the African Democratic Congress (ADC-PCC), a Nigerian opposition political party, accuses President Bola Tinubu's government of using judicial institutions and security forces to intimidate its opponents ahead of the 2027 presidential election. Its director of media and communications, Kola Ologbondiyan, made the accusations in Abuja, saying violence targeting opposition members threatens Nigeria's democratic system, ThisDay reports.
Ologbondiyan notably referred to the deaths of several members of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), following an attack allegedly carried out by suspected members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the ruling party, against an electoral gathering venue in Delta State. He also denounced incidents targeting ADC, NDC and Allied Peoples Movement (APM) activists in Kaduna, Kogi, Katsina, Kebbi and Sokoto states. The spokesman described the violence as a threat to democratic freedoms.
The campaign council also questioned the neutrality of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which is responsible for organising elections in Nigeria. It claims that the electoral register database may have been compromised and that APC supporters have been placed in sensitive positions within the institution. The ADC-PCC also accuses security services of arresting, harassing and intimidating opposition members. Ologbondiyan further alleged the involvement of a serving director of a security agency in the APC presidential campaign council, as co-director in charge of security and intelligence.
The accusations are part of a series of statements by the Nigerian opposition on the conditions of the 2027 electoral contest. On 6 November, Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde called on Bola Tinubu to protect opposition parties (Seyi Makinde's call to protect the opposition). On 8 November, the ADC had already criticised the six-month duration of the state of emergency imposed in Rivers State (ADC criticises Tinubu for offering only six months of state of emergency in Rivers).
