Politics
Being The Text Of The World Press Conference Addressed By Senator David Mark, Chairman Of African Democratic Congress (Adc) On April 2, 2026, At The Shehu Yar’adua Centre, Abuja.
THIS ATTACK ON DEMOCRACY WILL NOT STAND
On behalf of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and lovers of democracy, I welcome you all to this world press conference.
Since 1999, Nigeria has been under democratic rule. After 27 years, we thought we could proudly celebrate the entrenchment of democracy, believing that the country’s dictatorial past has receded into history.
Our experience in the past three years or so since President Bola Tinubu came to power has however confirmed otherwise. Democracy is only sustained by the quality of freedom that it offers and guarantees, especially the freedom to choose, the freedom to participate, and the freedom to associate. These freedoms are so critical to democracy that without them, democracy dies.
Yet, in the past three years, we have witnessed a relentless assault on these very freedoms. The agenda is very clear, to create a situation where, in 2027, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu emerges as the only option left for the people, despite the widespread suffering and wanton killings going on across the country. The twin challenge of deepening poverty, and worsening security situation in the country did not just happen. They are direct consequences of the failure of this government. They know that Nigerians will not want this to continue. They know Nigerians will vote them out. This is why they would do anything to hang on to power by hook or crook.
Background to the Coalition
The coalition of opposition parties came about as a result of a collective search for democratic freedom and the desire to resist what was clearly a relentless assault on opposition political parties. The coalition leaders decided to come together under ADC to save multi-party democracy in Nigeria and rescue Nigeria from what was clearly an emerging dictatorship.
Atiku David Mark at ADC press conference
ADC National Chairman, David Mark and Atiku Abubakar during a press conference on Thursday in Abuja. @Atiku/X
We did not come to the ADC by chance. We did our due diligence. We fulfilled all the party’s constitutional requirements, as well as all wider requirements under the laws that guide the management and operation of political parties.
In furtherance of this process, a NEC meeting was convened on July 29th, 2025, monitored by INEC officials. One of the conclusions of that NEC meeting was the dissolution of the National Working Committee of the party, and the ratification of a caretaker committee to take over the affairs of the party, with my humble self, David Mark, as the National Chairman; Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as the National Secretary; as well as others who have since been serving as officers of the party.
In addition to witnessing this process that brought in the new leadership of the party, a formal report of these resolutions was subsequently communicated to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). On September 9th, 2025, INEC then uploaded the names of the relevant NWC members of the party, based on the NEC resolutions.
One of the officials in the dissolved NWC was Nafiu Bala, who was one of the Deputy National Chairmen of the party. It is on record that Gombe resigned this position on 17th May, 2025. His resignation was also duly transmitted to INEC on the 12th of August, 2025. Regardless of his resignation, he decided to approach the courts on September 2nd, 2025, four clear months after his resignation, seeking to be recognised as the Chairman of the ADC.
What this means is that by the 2nd of September, when he approached the courts, INEC was already aware that Secretary Aregbesola and I had been inaugurated on the 29th of July in a process monitored by INEC. INEC was also aware that Gombe had resigned his position before the said inauguration on the 29th of July.
While this matter was in court, our team of lawyers approached the Court of Appeal, challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court. In rejecting the appeal, the Court of Appeal ordered the parties including INEC to maintain the status quo ante bellum.
After this ruling on March 12th, 2026, we noticed a flurry of activities by lawyers associated with Nafiu Bala, requesting INEC to recognise him as the new chairman, or to de-recognise Aregbesola and I as the secretary and chairman respectively, in a curious interpretation of what constitutes status quo ante bellum. But we knew all along that Nafiu Bala and his lawyers were not acting on their own volition. They had become willing tools in the hands of a ruling party that had lost all support and goodwill of the Nigerian people; a government that had become desperate to cling on to power by all means even if it meant throwing the country into avoidable crisis.
In the past couple of months, ADC has become the only viable opposition party left in Nigeria. But this APC government does not want any opposition. While we were fully aware of all their desperate plans, we remained confident that no level of desperation would have driven the government and the INEC to take a direct action against the ruling of the court. But we were wrong.
It was therefore to our surprise, yesterday, 1st of April, that INEC issued a press statement after the close of business hours, announcing that it had decided to withdraw recognition for both the ADC leadership, which I head, and the fictitious one purportedly led by Nafiu Bala, thereby creating a false equivalence between the parties.
By purporting to recognizing Nafiu Bala as a faction, INEC seems to have conveniently forgotten that this individual had resigned his position, to the knowledge of INEC itself.
The Legal Position
The crux of the matter is the interpretation of what constitutes status quo ante bellum, which the Court of Appeal directed should be maintained. From all authoritative counsel at our disposal, there is no legal interpretation or precedent that could possibly lead to the outcome that INEC seeks to foist on our party.
ADC National Chairman, David Mark addressing a press conference on Thursday in Abuja
ADC National Chairman, David Mark addressing a press conference on Thursday in Abuja
Based on its press statement of yesterday, INEC is pretending to be confused as to what constitutes the status quo ante bellum. If this was so, under the circumstances, what one would have expected was for INEC to approach the Court of Appeal to request a judicial interpretation of what truly represents the status quo under the circumstances. But it did not do this. While posturing to be neutral, its actions confirm that it has become irredeemably partisan, working, as it were, towards a preconceived agenda. With its action, this INEC has left no one in doubt that it has chosen the path of dishonour and has become complicit in undermining Nigeria’s democracy. It therefore can no longer be trusted.
What we say in essence is this: INEC cannot choose to fix the status quo from the day it took the administrative action to upload the names of the new ADC officials on its website, because INEC does not have the power to determine for any political party who its leaders should be. That decision was taken on July 29th, not on September 9th. With its press release yesterday, INEC has invented a status quo that never existed, because there was no time that the African Democratic Congress (ADC) did not have a duly constituted leadership. What INEC has done is to create a situation that, by its own curious logic, leaves the ADC without leadership. This certainly cannot be the status quo that the Court of Appeal directed should be preserved. It is an INEC invention that is not known to any Nigerian law.
There is only one conclusion that Nigerians can draw from the April 1st action taken by INEC: THE ELECTORAL UMPIRE HAS TAKEN SIDES. IT CAN NO LONGER BE TRUSTED. As a matter of fact, INEC has acted in contempt of the Court of Appeal and has therefore acted unlawfully.
My fellow democrats, distinguished ladies and gentlemen. It is not the ADC that is under attack. This is a direct assault on Nigeria’s democracy and the right of Nigerians to choose, participate, and exercise their rights as free citizens. We have witnessed how the APC-led Federal Government has undermined, compromised, and coerced other opposition political parties. The ADC has risen as the last bastion between Nigeria’s democracy and full-blown dictatorship. And this is what worries them.
What is now unfolding is a concerted effort to dismantle that last bulwark. If we allow this to happen, it could signal the end of our democracy as we know it. If we yield to it, we would have become complicit by our inaction. We therefore hold it a duty to our democracy and the Nigerian people to say “no”.
Right now, I speak to Nigerians at home and in diaspora. I also speak directly to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu: with 90% of the National Assembly and over 30 of Nigeria’s 36 Governors in the APC, President Tinubu, what are you afraid of? If you are convinced that you have done well for the people who voted for you, why are you afraid of a free, fair, and transparent electoral contest? If you are indeed the democrat that you claim to be, why are you bent on destroying all opposition political parties?
Let me reiterate for the record; there are no competing claims on the leadership of the ADC. Nafiu Bala has no locus whatsoever. INEC should have waited for the Court of Appeal to decide this matter. Instead, INEC went ahead to do the bidding of the ruling party. But let us be clear: the role of INEC over political parties is not administrative: it is not managerial: It is simply supervisory.
For the avoidance of doubt, the leadership of ADC inaugurated at the 29th July 2025, NEC meeting remains the lawful leaders of the party. Party members and all Nigerians should therefore remain calm as there is no cause for alarm whatsoever.
It is important to state the net implications of this decision taken by INEC, in case they had not thought of it, or they just do not care:
First, by attempting to subvert the leadership of the ADC, INEC has already undermined our participation in the Osun and Ekiti elections taking place later this year.
Secondly, we have our congresses starting on the 9th of April, 2026, ending with our convention on the 14th April, 2026. We have given due notice to INEC, and they have acknowledged receipt of that notice. This is what the law requires of us.
Let us sound a note of warning. This INEC under Professor Joash Amupitan will be held directly responsible for whatever actions or reactions that follow this criminal path that it has chosen to take.
Our demand is therefore clear:
We demand the immediate resignation or sack of the INEC Chairman, Professor Amupitan, and all the National Commissioners. We no longer have confidence in them. We are convinced that they are incapable of conducting any credible election.
Let us also make it clear: we are proceeding with our party programmes, because there is nothing under the law that makes INEC’s attendance, a mandatory requirement. We have duly served INEC notice, and we will proceed accordingly.
We also call on the international community to take note of INEC’s actions of April 1st, and of the restraint we are exercising today. We urge them to recognise the clear threat to Nigeria’s democracy and stability, and to hold accountable those who are undermining the integrity of the electoral process.
We call on Nigerians to defend our democracy. This is a defining moment. Stand firm. Speak out. Participate. Resist any attempt to impose a one-party state on Nigeria. Nigeria belongs to all of us, and together, we must protect it.
It is often said, that the arc of history does not bend towards tyranny. It bends towards freedom.
And no matter how long the night may seem, the morning will come.
Nigeria will not be silenced. Nigeria will not be conquered.
Nigeria is rising, ADC is rising.
Sen. David Mark
National Chairman
African Democratic Congress
April 2, 2026.
_
–Askes Benue Indigenes to Support Gov Sani
By Felix Umande
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Senator George Akume, has said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu deserves a second term and urged Northerners to shelve presidential ambitions until 2031.
Akume stated this on Saturday in Kaduna during a pre-campaign engagement with Benue State indigenes resident in Kaduna, where he said any Northerner contesting against Tinubu in 2027 would be acting against the collective interest of the North.
According to him, power rotation between North and South, agreed upon in Kaduna, remains the formula that has sustained Nigeria’s unity and territorial integrity, and must be respected. In his words:
“Anybody who is from the North and running for the presidency is an enemy of the North. It is not yet our turn. The North’s turn is in 2031. Prepare to vote for Tinubu.”
The SGF warned the gathering not to be deceived by “pretenders” driven by personal ambition, describing one opposition figure as inconsistent. He added:
“Forget that other one making noise that he was going to remove fuel subsidy. He is always flip flopping. He says something today and changes gear the next minute.”
He argued that President Tinubu has been fair to all sections of the country in appointments and distribution of projects, without religious bias.
“Let us remember that the President has been fair to all in terms of appointments and others. He doesn’t favour one religion over the other. Just look at the figures,” he said.
Akume said Benue has benefitted from numerous federal interventions under Tinubu in healthcare, roads and education, adding that over 65 percent of NELFUND beneficiaries are from the North.
He also praised Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State as a believer in the vision of the late Sardauna and called for his re-election.
“Kaduna State is a historic city that gave us meaning and purpose. Your governor is a good man and he has done well for this state. Let us return him to power too,” he said.
The SGF emphasized unity, peaceful coexistence and preservation of cultural heritage as vital for national progress, noting that leadership, not ethnicity, should guide political choices.
“I was Governor of Benue State and the Fulanis were there. It is about leadership. If Asiwaju was not a good leader, I would not tell you otherwise,” he said.
The meeting, attended by Benue indigenes and political stakeholders, focused on community interests and political participation ahead of 2027.
Dignitaries present included former Jigawa Governor Saminu Turaki, Dame Pauline Tallen, Sen. Abu Ibrahim, Minister of Water Resources Prof. Joseph Utsev, and Minister of Steel Development Prince Shuaibu Abubakar Audu, among others..
By Felix Umande
The All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Campaign Council has dismissed as false an allegation by Timi Frank that the Nigerian Government is plotting to assassinate former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC.
Spokesperson of the Council, Dele Alake, said in a statement on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, that the claim is grave and must be proven.
He said the Council categorically rejects the claim that the Presidency or the APC Campaign Council is involved in any plot to assassinate the former Vice President or any opposition figure.
“Our attention has been drawn to the statement by Timi Frank, a member of the African Democratic Congress, alleging that the Nigerian Government is plotting to assassinate former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the ADC. This is a grave allegation that Mr. Frank must prove,” the statement said.
Alake urged security agencies to invite Frank to substantiate the allegation, given its gravity and the need to preserve life, and called on Frank to provide any information in his possession to enable prompt investigation.
He also described as totally false the narrative that security personnel attached to the former Vice President have been withdrawn, stating that Atiku remains well protected by the police and the Department of State Security.
“Contrary to the falsehood promoted by Timi Frank, President Tinubu recently directed security agencies to reinforce and increase protection for all presidential, vice-presidential, governorship and deputy governorship candidates across the country,” he said.
“The security around the ADC presidential candidate has never been compromised. As a former Vice President of Nigeria, he enjoys two levels of state-funded security protection. President Tinubu has increased security protection for Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as a presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 general elections,” Alake added.
He said President Bola Tinubu, as a statesman and democrat, recognises opposition politics as essential to Nigeria’s 27-year-old democracy, noting that Tinubu was for 16 years the face of opposition before galvanising the movement that defeated the Peoples Democratic Party in 2015.
Alake described Frank’s claim as “typical opposition rabble-rousing meant to heat the polity,” accusing some opposition figures of writing open letters and tagging foreign leaders and international organisations on social media to draw attention.
“As we go deeper into the campaign season, politicians and supporters will continue to make outlandish statements and frivolous allegations to gain political advantage,” he said.
He urged candidates, political parties and supporters to be factual and responsible in public statements and avoid utterances that can trigger tension, adding that political competition should be peaceful, lawful and focused on issues that matter to Nigerians.
By Isa Abdul, Abuja
The deeply embedded contradictions within the ruling All Progressives Congress APC, are more worrying than the fears posed by the opposition ahead of the 2027 general elections, according to Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima.
Shettima expressed these fears on Saturday in Abuja while unveiling the campaign head office of Arewa for Asiwaju (A4A), a northern coalition backing the Tinubu/Shettima ticket, and formally inaugurating its campaign structure. In his words:
“Honestly, I am not afraid of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP. I am not afraid of a diminished Peter Obi. But I am more afraid of internal contradictions within our household. If we unite as a people, as a family, we will conquer.”
He cited northern leaders’ who were in the presidential race at the expense of their governors, warning:
“There is no point in championing the cause of the presidential election and then undermining the governor in the gubernatorial election. Honestly, it will not go down well with the system.
“Let’s rally round our governors. Let’s rally round our members of the National Assembly. Let’s rally round President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and see to the victory in the next round of elections.”
Shettims said the North had already made its choice. “By now, I believe the North has spoken. We have spoken with a resounding voice and unmistakable conviction. From Adamawa to Zamfara, from Borno to Niger, we have spoken.”
He reminded the gathering: “In less than 100 days, Nigerians will return to the polls. Democracy requires us to seek their confidence again, with humility about the work outstanding and conviction about the cause we have chosen.”
He told party members how to defeat Atiku Abubakar, charging them “Go and perform. Go and defeat Baba Atiku. Defeat him respectfully,” he said.
He expressed optimism that the party had the structure to contest every polling unit. “There are 176,845 polling units across the country. The APC, from ward to local government levels, has 361,045 officials. What it means is that we can match every polling unit two to two,” he said.
Shettima stressed that each appointee must prove their local strength because “Politics is still local”, adding that he had asked the Borno State governor to compile a list of all political appointees from the state to local government level.
“Let him account for his performance at his polling unit, at his ward unit and in his local government,” he said.
On the party’s standing in the North, he said, “Out of 19 states in the North, 18 are in the APC.” He said 15 of the 18 members of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) from Kano in the House of Representatives have crossed to the APC, adding: “The governor is with the APC.”
The Vice President acknowledged that many families are struggling. “Every household struggling to make ends meet reminds us how much remains to be done,” he said. “We lose our hearing when applause becomes our only source of information.”
Defending the administration’s economic record, he said Tinubu inherited a weak economy. “When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed the mantle of leadership in this country, what we had in our foreign reserves was a country with 3.9 billion dollars, barely enough to import oil for one month. And our Ways and Means expenditure was over N27 trillion.
“Nigeria was on the road to Caracas. The economy was teetering on the brink of collapse. He literally saved the nation,” Shettima said, adding that “for the first time in nearly 18 years, our foreign reserves are in the neighbourhood of 58.9 billion dollars.”
He assured that the North has nothing to fear about a Tinubu second term.
“For the North, we have absolutely nothing to fear in a Tinubu second term. He has the North at heart,” he said.
At the event, the National Chairman of the APC, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, moved a motion for the President’s return and asked the audience to affirm it. In his words:
“Today is a time for us to renew a mandate that was largely supported by the North, and the North again will largely support the return of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term.”
He cited the President’s projects in the region, including the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano and Kano-Maiduguri roads. “Those two roads alone are over 900 kilometres, more than the 700 kilometres of Lagos Road,” he said.
The Director General of A4A and former Jigawa State governor, Muhammad Badaru Abubakar, disclosed that the new campaign headquarters is at No. 4 Port Harcourt Street, Area 11, Garki, Abuja, describing it as “the biggest campaign office anywhere in the country.” He added:
“Let it be understood that this building is more than just a campaign office. It is a message. It says that Arewa is serious.”
He promised that the group would run “a campaign that is disciplined, peaceful and issue-based,” taking its message to markets, farms, campuses, mosques and churches.
FG Gives Workers N70,000 Monthly Transport Support for Six Months
Spread the loveBy Nick Ibe, Abuja To cushion the harsh impact of rising living costs, the Federal Government has approved...
Trump and the 95-year Mother: Government That Cares for All Citizens
Spread the love“Trump… Please bring my son back to me. I am begging you for mercy.” And what Trump did...
Probe Panel Says Heat, Dehydration Killed 33 Detained Niger Miners
Spread the love–Calls for NSCDC reforms, compensation for victims By Son Tertsea, Abuja Dehydration was cause of the death of...
Tinubu Seeks Law To Bring Back Nigerians Jailed Abroad
Spread the loveBy Felix Umande President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has transmitted a bill to the Senate seeking to empower the...
Senate Says: Travel Agencies, Short-let Apartments Need Closer Scrutiny in Human Trafficking Probe
Spread the loveBy Isa Abdul, Abuja As part of efforts to dismantle trafficking networks and protect Nigerians from exploitation abroad,...
El Niño: Its Meaning, Effects and How Nigerians Should Prepare for It
Spread the loveBy Son Tertsea, Abuja Nigerians have been alerted that El Niño event would raise concerns that potentially affect...
Accusations of Data Theft: MTN Explains How Nigerians Consume Data Fast
Spread the loveBy Nick Ibe, Abuja: Engaging in high-resolution video streaming, automatic downloads, background applications, cloud backups and increased internet...
Kogi Authorities Probe Why Police Corporal Killed female Colleague, Self
Spread the loveBy Michael Lim The Kogi State Police Command has begun to probe why a police corporal, Amos Yusuf,...
WHO Declares Nigeria Ebola-Free After Evacuation of Patient to Switzerland
Spread the loveBy Nick Ibe, Abuja Dr Mohamed Janabi, the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, says Nigeria...
Fake Letter Lands Atiku Supporter in Court
Spread the loveBy Isa Abdul, Abuja For circulating a fake document purportedly written by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the...