ABUJA — The Presidency has lashed out at the newly formed opposition coalition anchored by the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing it as an alliance of disgruntled politicians bound together not by ideology or vision for Nigeria, but by a shared animosity toward President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, made the statement on Thursday through his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, in response to the coalition’s formal unveiling a day earlier. The alliance includes prominent political figures such as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, among others.
At a Wednesday event, the coalition members declared their intent to use the ADC as their political platform to challenge and potentially unseat President Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.
However, Onanuga described the group as politically irrelevant and ideologically bankrupt.
“Some members of the hijacked ADC, who were reported as APC members, left the party years or months ago. Let the public not be deceived by the opposition’s narrative about their relevance or whether the APC will mourn their departure,” Onanuga wrote.
He listed several key defectors and former government officials — including Rotimi Amaechi, former Attorney General Abubakar Malami, former Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika, ex-Osun Governor Rauf Aregbesola, and Kashim Imam — as individuals either expelled or who have voluntarily distanced themselves from the APC.
Also named was former APC National Chairman John Odigie Oyegun, whom Onanuga claimed is now seeking renewed political relevance outside the ruling party.
Onanuga accused the coalition of lacking a coherent agenda for national development.
“A political party with no clear agenda or ideology — whose members are united only by their hatred for President Tinubu — cannot be good for our country. It will only set us back by decades,” he warned.
“These politicians are desperados, hungry for power, not for the benefit of Nigerians but for themselves. They want power at all costs because they cannot endure another four years in the political wilderness or be banished to political irrelevance.”
He further predicted the eventual collapse of the coalition, stating that its members’ conflicting ambitions would soon cause internal rifts and lead to its disintegration.
While the opposition bloc has not formally responded to Onanuga’s remarks, sources close to the coalition hinted that a coordinated reaction may be issued in the coming days.
The war of words marks the intensifying political atmosphere as Nigeria edges closer to another pivotal election cycle in 2027.
