A former Nigerian Ambassador to Canada, Ambassador Dare Bejide, has said the African Democratic Party (ADC) is the party to beat in the forthcoming 2026 Ekiti State governorship and 2027 general elections.
He said Nigerians were embracing the party as a veritable alternative to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and crisis-ridden PDP.
Bejide who is a former secretary to the state government (SSG) in Ekiti State and a governorship aspirant on the platform of ADC, said the party has quality people and the capacity to win elections both at the state and national levels.
The former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member, spoke in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, at an event organised to mark his 66th birthday.
Bejide who boasted that the incumbent governor would be defeated at the June 20, 2025 governorship poll if given an ADC ticket in a free, fair and credible primary.
He said, “We have an influx of people joining the party everyday. From the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other political parties, just wait and see. As far as I am concerned, when I win the ticket and the mandate of the party.
“For instance, I was the pioneer secretary of the PDP in the state and the party presently has been hijacked by the ‘bad boys’ , so nobody wants to wrestle with the ‘pig’, that was why we left. In APC too, democracy has taken a flight and so everybody wants to be at the place where democracy can flourish. And in ADC, we are going to conduct a transparent primary and I know other parties can’t do it because they will impose candidates on their people. Those that are aggrieved will come and we are talking to them”.
On how to avoid or manage the crisis that may emanate from varying political ambitions of leaders in the new coalition party, he said, “Ambition in a way can split a party if there is no process.”
He added, “For instance, when a political party believes in the imposition of candidates, then whoever is aggrieved would not be very happy. But once there is a transparent process, both the winner and the loser will embrace each other. Because it is like they have fought a very good battle as winners and as losers. I am sure most parties don’t behave that way and that is what is going to split them”.
Speaking on what will be his agenda if given the opportunity of ruling the state, he said youths and vulnerable women empowerment would be prioritised .
“We have a larger population of women and the youth, so, if a government does not reckon with them, it shows that the government is not in touch with the reality of the situation on ground. If elected, I would pay more attention to their development, provide an enabling environment for them to flourish. For the youths, I would make farming more attractive to them . It will no longer be a manual thing but mechanized agriculture. We also also establish skill acquisition centres in all the three Senatorial districts of the state and ensure that our artisans are retrained at no cost. The mechanics, vulcanizers, bricklayers and others .
“There would be lots of appointments for women in our cabinet, even far more that 34 percent affirmative action and improvement on the state infrastructure by addressing deplorable state of roads in the state”.
When asked about what people should be looking for from him, at 66, he said, “I believe I can still make some contributions towards the development of Ekiti state and Nigeria at large. That is why I am coming out once again to contest for the governorship position of this state and I believe by the grace of God, this time around, it is going to be different”.
Also, speaking a former commissioner in the state and a chieftain of the party, Chief Segun Akinwumi, posited that ADC has the muscle to wrestle power from the ruling APC.
He said their members know election processes, and understand how to win elections.
According to him, “We understand and we are working out modalities that will help us in winning the 2026 governorship election in the state.
“The first thing is to get a credible platform which we have got now, that is ADC. Followed by a credible candidate. Ekiti people are disenchanted with the present government. As things are now, in another two months’ time everyone will know that ADC is out for the real thing. Ambassador Bejide that we are trying to bring up now has all that it takes to be governor of this state”.
