The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of promoting political violence and orchestrating attacks on opposition parties, describing the ruling party’s condemnation of recent attacks on political gatherings as hypocritical and diversionary.
The council, in a statement signed by its Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, challenged the APC to take responsibility for the alleged violence and call its members to order, warning that the growing hostility against opposition groups poses a threat to Nigeria’s democracy.
It maintained that neither the APC nor the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu could absolve itself of responsibility for what it described as an increasingly violent political environment, accusing the ruling party of attempting to divert public attention from its alleged complicity.
“The APC cannot pretend to be a victim of the very violence it has nurtured, funded and unleashed on Nigerians since it came to power.
“From Edo to Cross River, from Gombe to Lagos, the pattern is the same: APC thugs disrupt opposition gatherings, attack innocent supporters, destroy campaign materials and then rush to the press to shed crocodile tears.”
The ADC-PCC further accused APC governors of institutionalising political violence in their states through alleged denial of rally venues to opposition parties, demolition of opposition offices, targeted physical attacks and destruction of vehicles belonging to opposition members.
It also alleged that opposition campaigns were being deliberately stifled through restrictions on party posters, candidates’ billboards and open political activities, including the imposition of what it described as prohibitive and unattainable fees.
The council specifically blamed the disruption of Thursday’s scheduled town hall meeting of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in Lagos on what it called the APC’s established pattern of intimidation and political sabotage.
“The disruption of Thursday’s scheduled town hall meeting of the Nigeria Democratic Congress in Lagos bears the unmistakable fingerprints of the APC.
“It is the same old script: orchestrate violence, intimidate the opposition, disrupt their activities and then issue public condemnations to cover up.”
The campaign council argued that while opposition parties were engaging Nigerians on pressing national challenges, including hunger, insecurity, unemployment, corruption and what it described as the collapse of governance under President Tinubu, the APC had allegedly resorted to violence because it had little to offer the electorate.
It also questioned the ruling party’s recent expression of concern over attacks on opposition gatherings, citing previous incidents in which ADC members and supporters were allegedly assaulted, rallies disrupted and party billboards destroyed.
“Where was the APC’s condemnation when our billboards were destroyed, our rallies disrupted and our members brutalised?
“Their sudden concern is not about peace; it is about diverting attention from their own atrocities.”
The ADC-PCC called on President Tinubu to heed the counsel of elder statesman, Professor Jerry Gana, and demonstrate the leadership expected of him by ensuring that political activities across the country take place in an atmosphere of peace, tolerance and democratic freedom.
It further disclosed that the ADC was compiling a comprehensive record of attacks allegedly suffered by its members, adding that the reports would be submitted to relevant international judicial and human rights institutions in due course.
Dismissing the APC’s condemnation as hollow and self-serving, the council urged Nigerians not to be deceived by what it described as the ruling party’s attempt to distance itself from the prevailing climate of political violence.
Reaffirming its commitment to peaceful, issue-based campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections, the ADC-PCC insisted that alleged intimidation and violence would not deter the party from mobilising Nigerians.
“The ADC remains committed to a peaceful, issue-based campaign. We will not be intimidated. We will not be silenced.
“No amount of APC-sponsored violence will stop Nigerians from voting for competence, integrity and a new beginning in 2027.”
The statement was signed by Kola Ologbondiyan, Director of Media and Publicity of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council.
Use more attribution throughoutReduce repeated APC accusationsMake the lead more neutral
