The National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Bolaji Abdullahi, has criticised the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing the party of prioritising the 2027 general election over addressing the country’s worsening economic and security challenges.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Abdullahi alleged that the APC has failed to respond adequately to reports of widespread poverty and hardship affecting millions of Nigerians.
According to him, democracy should be centred on improving the lives of citizens and safeguarding their right to freely choose their leaders.
“We have to ask ourselves if they truly believe in democracy. When we say we shall build a nation where justice and peace shall reign, that imposes responsibility on us. Democracy, by its definition, is the right of the people to choose. So whatever you do to truncate the right of the people to choose undermines democracy,” he said.
Abdullahi further accused the ruling party of neglecting pressing national issues such as hunger and insecurity while focusing on political calculations ahead of the 2027 elections.
“Our politics has become cynical. The country is sinking under their watch. The last report we had was that 17 million Nigerians are starving under their watch, and the President has not said a word. Democracy is anchored on the principle that you want to make life better for the people. That is one thing that this government does not care about,” he said.
He added that, in his view, the APC appears more concerned about retaining power than tackling the country’s challenges.
“If you listen to them, they have only one problem—not kidnapping, not hunger. The only problem they have, as far as they are concerned, is 2027. They talk as if they are in opposition, as if their mandate has ended and they no longer have a duty to solve the problems confronting the country,” Abdullahi stated.
Speaking on the opposition coalition that recently adopted the ADC platform, Abdullahi said the alliance was formed out of a shared belief that Nigeria’s political culture must change.
“The coalition that led us to ADC was based on the recognition that this country is in the mess we are in today because of the kind of politics we have played over the years. Nigeria is not going to get out of this mess until we play a different politics. It was the desire to play a different politics that led to the coalition,” he said.
