By Sunday Dare
Even before the official commencement of the election season and before the Polls open, the “opposition”, a hurriedly stitched together contraption in search of a launch pad are screaming blue murder. The script is familiar: attack and blackmail the President, discredit and second guess the electoral process and hold Press briefings to flaunt unsubstantiated allegations and lies against the administration. All of these so that the international community will “help” them.
In Honorable Nnenna, the ADC legislators found someone fit for the role. As former chair, foreign affairs committee, 7th and 8th House of Representatives she was their best voice. Sadly, ADC will need more than the sophistry and phonetics in her delivery. Let’s begin to tear apart her claims and that of her ADC Forum.
The so-called ADC National Legislators Coalition delivered an outing remarkably full of theatrics but expectedly short on substance, restraint, and constitutional fidelity.
What Nigerians just witnessed from the ADC motley crowed is not a principled defense of democracy, but a calculated attempt to weaponize rhetoric, manufacture outrage, and distract from internal disarray within a political party struggling to maintain coherence and balance.
Ironically, the ADC press conference began on a note of truth. In their own words, they painstakingly chronicled the democratic credentials of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu—his historic role in strengthening opposition politics, expanding democratic space, defending pluralism, and standing firm even under military and authoritarian pressures. They reminded Nigerians that he mobilized resistance, nurtured political contestation, and remained a central pillar in sustaining democratic governance.
On that point, they were correct and that is because they could not change that solid democratic foundation and narrative of President Bola Tinubu. Let’s give them some
acknowledgement for stating it plainly.
But having established those facts, they took a curious turn—attempting, without evidence, to portray the very same individual as a threat to the democratic values he has consistently upheld. That contradiction is not just weak—it is intellectually untenable.
A leader’s record is not a switch that flips overnight. The same discipline, convictions, and democratic instincts that defined President Tinubu’s political journey have not suddenly evaporated. You cannot spend the first half of a press conference affirming a man’s lifelong commitment to democracy, and the second half alleging—without proof—that he has abandoned it. It simply does not hold.
On the specific issue that triggered this reaction: the President did not mention the ADC—by name or by implication. His remarks were general, as is consistent with his style as a national leader addressing a broad audience. The decision by the ADC to assume those remarks were directed at them is, at best, an exercise in self-indictment. If the description of “noise” resonates, perhaps the issue is not with the statement—but with the conduct it reflects.
This is not a matter of suppression; it is a matter of standards. Democracy thrives on competition, yes—but it also demands organization, coherence, and credibility. Disorder cannot be rebranded as authenticity simply because it occurs in public.
The allegations regarding judicial interference are equally speculative and irresponsible. Nigeria’s judiciary remains constitutionally independent, and no amount of conjecture can substitute for evidence. Attempting to cast doubt on the integrity of the courts based on political disagreements is a dangerous path—one that weakens institutions rather than protects them.
Similarly, the attempt to drag the Chief of Staff into this narrative is misplaced. The President speaks for himself- and through his spokespersons- clearly and consistently. Isolated remarks, of the CoS, stripped of context and amplified for political effect, cannot be weaponized into proof of executive interference. More importantly, internal disputes within the ADC cannot be outsourced to the Presidency, or indeed the APC.
What is evident, however, is a pattern: a party grappling with internal fragmentation, projecting its challenges outward. Instead of consolidating its ranks, resolving disputes, and presenting a credible alternative, the ADC has chosen the easier route—externalizing blame and amplifying conspiracy.
Even more concerning is the resort to alarmist rhetoric—claims of democratic collapse, institutional capture, or authoritarian drift. These are not only unfounded; they are deliberately provocative. Nigeria’s constitutional order is intact, the separation of powers remains functional, and no credible evidence has been presented to suggest otherwise.
The truth is far less dramatic: internal party disorganization is being reframed as external persecution.
What the ADC represents today is not a coalition of ideas, but a congregation of political opportunists—men driven less by conviction and more by an unrestrained appetite for power, each convinced that power must ultimately reside with him and him alone.
There is no shared philosophy, no unifying doctrine—only ambition colliding with ambition. This is why their internal contradictions are so glaring.
Their chief convener, Atiku Abubakar, has himself gone on national television to openly traduce and malign the very individuals he now stands shoulder to shoulder with—asserting that his Kano ally’s relevance and popularity does not extend beyond Kano, and dismissing his once-upon-a-time running mate from the South-East as perpetually unelectable.
These are not distant historical footnotes; they are recent, on-record statements that expose the absence of trust, respect, and ideological alignment within this so-called coalition.
What then binds them together? Certainly not belief—only expediency. And when a political formation is built on such fragile, self-serving foundations, it is inevitable that it turns outward in search of enemies to mask the instability within.
This is not a coalition preparing to govern; it is a gathering struggling to agree—even among themselves—on who should lead.
Even among thieves, there is honor. Within the ADC and its promoters, only disdain and self adulation.
Let it be clearly stated: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains a committed democrat. His record—both in opposition and in office—reflects a consistent respect for the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, and the integrity of democratic institutions. He has contested elections, respected outcomes, and relied on due process—even when decisions did not go in his favor.
The Renewed Hope family therefore rejects, in the strongest terms, the attempt to distort facts, mislead the public, and undermine confidence in Nigeria’s democratic institutions.
We urge the ADC to redirect its energy inward: resolve its leadership disputes, strengthen its internal processes, and engage Nigerians with substance rather than speculation. Democracy is not sustained by press conferences—it is built through discipline, organization, and credibility.
Nigerians at this point, deserve a political discourse grounded in facts, not fiction; in reality, not rhetoric as the democratic space widens. What is required is not noise—but leadership, and this is the one virture the contraption called ADC, in its current form and state, cannot provide.
Like we asked Alhaji Wada Nas of blessed memory, let’s ask the ADC : What’s that Noise?
| Dare is the Special adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications