Susan Abayomi
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of allegedly working to establish a one-party state in Nigeria by pressuring opposition governors to join the ruling party or become part of its presidential campaign council.
The ADC council made the allegation while reacting to the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, arguing that the inclusion of opposition governors in the ruling party’s campaign structure threatens Nigeria’s multiparty democracy.
In a statement issued by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, the council alleged that the ruling party was seeking to concentrate political power in the hands of one individual, with national institutions, security agencies and the judiciary allegedly being used to weaken opposition parties.
“What we are witnessing is not politics but political abduction,” the council stated, describing the alleged pressure on opposition governors as an abuse of political power.
The ADC campaign council further accused the ruling political establishment of prioritising the retention of power over addressing the economic hardship, hunger and insecurity affecting Nigerians.
According to Ologbondiyan, the country’s political leaders should focus on improving the living conditions of citizens rather than pursuing strategies aimed at maintaining political control.
He called on Nigerians to oppose what he described as the emergence of immoral politics, warning that the country’s democracy was experiencing one of its most challenging periods.
Ologbondiyan also alleged that the APC-led government had exploited poverty, hunger and insecurity to weaken Nigerians and cripple opposition parties.
He maintained that the current political situation fell short of the democratic ideals championed by the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (M.K.O.) Abiola and others who sacrificed for Nigeria’s democratic struggle.
The ADC council’s allegations centre on concerns about political defections, the role of opposition parties and the preservation of multiparty democracy in Nigeria.
