The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for what it describes as an “unlawful and insensitive” early campaign for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election, accusing the party of flouting electoral laws as Nigerians grapple with worsening economic and security crises.

It criticised the wave of public rallies and campaign billboards springing up in various states across the country, declaring support for Tinubu’s second-term bid, two years before the next general election.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said these “choreographed endorsements” from Abuja to Kano not only mock Nigerians’ suffering, but also contravene the provisions of the Electoral Act and recent warnings from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which prohibits campaign activity until 150 days before an election.

“While the ruling party chants ‘four more years’ and sings songs of a sinking mandate, inflation has galloped beyond the reach of ordinary citizens,” Abdullahi said. “The naira has collapsed, petrol prices have multiplied, kidnapping has morphed into an industry—this is a government distracted from its duty to govern.”

According to the ADC, inflation—already at 22 per cent in 2023—peaked at nearly 35 per cent last December and remains above 22 per cent today. The statement noted that food, transport, and rent costs have surged by over 60 per cent since Tinubu assumed office. Similarly, the naira, which exchanged at around ?461/$ in early 2023, has now plummeted to over ?1,500/$, eroding savings and strangling small businesses.

The party also decried skyrocketing petrol prices, now averaging more than ?1,000 per litre since the removal of fuel subsidy, as well as the rising debt burden, which it said is “devouring the treasury.”

Citing World Bank projections, the ADC noted that debt servicing has outstripped total federal revenue, leaving little room for investments in healthcare, education, or infrastructure. “Revenue mobilisation is crawling at just 11 per cent of GDP, well below African averages, yet the government continues to borrow repeatedly,” the statement said.

On the issue of insecurity, the party painted a grim picture. Between April and June alone, it said, over 1,800 civilians and 122 security personnel were killed in violent incidents. In Zamfara State’s Sabon Gari Dirmi community, more than 50 people were reportedly abducted last week in a mass kidnapping. “Our streets are lined not with security personnel but with Tinubu’s campaign billboards,” the statement added.

The ADC also pointed to recurring national grid collapses, worsening press freedom rankings, and deepening corruption as further signs of systemic governance failure.

“Under the APC, Nigerians are hungry, sick, and scared. But rather than confront these challenges, the government is building an army of digital propagandists and illusion creators,” Abdullahi stated.

The party demanded an immediate end to what it termed the APC’s “illegal campaign machinery” and called for the dismantling of all premature campaign materials. It pledged to challenge the APC both in the public sphere and “at the ballot box when the time comes.”

“Until the lawful campaign window opens, every political billboard is a billboard of illegality,” the statement concluded.

This criticism comes amid mounting concerns over the legality and timing of political activities in the lead-up to the 2027 general election, as well as increasing frustration among citizens over deteriorating living conditions under the current administration. (The Guardian)

• PHOTO: Former Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal (left); ex-National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; 2023 Presidential Candidate of Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi; Acting National Secretary of African Democratic Congress (ADC), Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and Acting National Chairman, ADC, David Mark, during the adoption of ADC by members of the National Coalition of Political Opposition Movement in Nigeria (NCPOMN), at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, yesterday.