ADC – A Movement Bereft Of Sincere Objectives

Governor Dikko Umaru Radda of Katsina State recently added thoughtful nuance and, perhaps unintentionally, a touch of drama to the ongoing debate between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the newly styled political pressure group, the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

The ADC, still trying to evolve from a movement into a political party, is positioning itself as an alternative to the APC, while seeking to inherit the political space left by the timely collapse of the once-dominant PDP.

Governor Radda, with surgical precision, dismantled the deceptive, but well-rehearsed rhetoric of the ADC’s power brokers. His straightforward questions threw the entire machinery of the ADC into disarray.
Their response was uncoordinated, some scattered like headless chickens, while others flailed about, confused like final-year sociology students mistakenly seated in an architecture exam hall. All this was in a desperate attempt to respond to the relevant and incisive questions Governor Radda posed.

Radda’s central poser was disarmingly simple: “Will these recycled political actors return fuel subsidies if they succeed in getting back to power?” This is not mere political grandstanding. It is a timely and necessary interrogation of the hypocrisy and self-serving narratives being pushed by ADC stalwarts many of whom actively participated in, or silently watched, the processes that culminated in the removal of fuel subsidy.

The question Governor Radda posed draws attention to the cynical rebranding of long-standing political actors now attempting to deceive Nigerians with populist, pseudo-progressive messaging.
These individuals now present themselves as saviours, re-packaging the long-standing socio-economic challenges passed down through previous administrations as uniquely the fault of the current, barely two-year-old administration. That, as Radda rightly pointed out, is an insult to the public’s intelligence.
Take, for example, the issue of fuel subsidy. The ADC movement seems to be building its entire campaign narrative around the “pain” of subsidy removal. But where was Nasir El-Rufai when the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which included subsidy removal as a major provision, was passed into law? As a sitting governor and former minister, El-Rufai had ample access and influence.

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Yet he neither mobilised against the bill nor raised a public objection. The same applies to other key figures in the movement, Amaechi, Aregbesola, and others, who held powerful ministerial and executive positions but chose silence over advocacy.

The truth is simple: they either supported the decision or lacked the foresight and courage to oppose it when it mattered most. In either case, their current posture as defenders of the people is unconvincing. It reeks of opportunism, not patriotism.

The Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), signed into law in August 2021, conclusively removed the fuel subsidy. President Buhari’s final budget did not include fuel subsidy provisions because the PIA had effectively deregulated the downstream sector. The National Assembly even held public hearings to allow stakeholders to voice objections, and one of these self-proclaimed saviours showed up.

Now, these same men, once surrounded by blaring sirens and insulated by intimidating convoys, are seeking to exploit the consequences of a policy they helped create or passively endorsed. El-Rufai, for instance, spent more time battling labourers in Kaduna than defending the poor. To now hear him speak as though he is leading a revolutionary struggle is laughable.

The same can be said of Atiku Abubakar, who was absent from Nigeria during the pivotal moments of the subsidy removal debate, mourning another failed presidential bid from the comfort of the UAE. He now reemerges, conveniently, to perform his familiar role as a perennial presidential hopeful.

Let’s not forget the irony that both Atiku and his former boss, President Obasanjo, established private universities A,BTI-American University and Bell University r,espectively, during their administration, at a time when public education was deteriorating. These men did not just fail to fix the system; they profited from its collapse.

Rotimi Amaechi, too, has shown a staggering disconnect from reality. Only recently, he used the N1 million tuition of Baze University (his preferred benchmark) to assess economic hardship, a slap in the face of millions struggling to pay school fees in public institutions. It’s no wonder he’s remembered more for entitlement than for impact, including the notorious incident involving the alleged misuse of his ministerial office for personal fafavoursAs for the ADC’s band of loud, low-value political foot soldiers, the so-called “10 for 10 Kobo” crowd, who perpetually dance to the tune of the highest bidder, their outbursts are more about self-preservation than ideology. They exist to ride the waves of intra-party chaos, not to offer meaningful leadership.

It is therefore important to reiterate that Governor Radda’s question about subsidy is not only relevant, but crucial. If the ADC’s leaders allowed the subsidy to be removed while in power, Nigerians deserve to know what magical formula they now claim to possess for reinstating it.

Ironically, the same APC governors, including El-Rufai, who now play the rescuer role were among those who lauded the passage of the PIA. According to The Guardian (August 19, 2021), the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) described the PIA as a milestone that would restructure the Nigerian economy.

So, unless El-Rufai dozed off during the meeting, his current crusade looks suspiciously like an afterthought driven by political expediency.

Rather than plotting a cosmetic “rescue” mission, the ADC’s leaders would do better to clean the messes they left behind. Amaechi, who has 16 years in public office, should explain how his options reflect the qualities of a reformer. He might also consider responding to the allegations of financial impropriety involving his wife and the NDDC, a case that remains unresolved.

And what of El-Rufai? If APC is the political villain he now claims it to be, why is his son, Hon. Bello El-Rufai, still seated comfortably in the House of Representatives under the APC banner? One would think that rescuing one’s own family would come before rescuing an entire nation. The contradiction is glaring. Governor Radda’s message remains simple and powerful: “Shine ya eyes.”