Anxiety As ADC Flags Off Presidential Campaign In Sokoto Today

There was anxiety in Sokoto State ahead of today’s flag-off of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential campaign, as the party alleged that the state government had sealed its campaign secretariat in the state capital.

The state chairman of the ADC, Hon. Abdullahi Maigwandu, who confirmed the development in a telephone interview last night, described the action as politically motivated.

“There is no fight, no crisis. Nothing is wrong in Sokoto. Everywhere is peaceful. They sealed our office simply because they don’t like us and don’t want us to hold our congress. That is the only reason,” he alleged.

The chairman said the party was still scouting for an alternative venue.

“We are deciding on the venue. In the next 30 minutes to one hour, you will hear from us,” he said.

He warned supporters travelling from outside the state against using the roads because of worsening insecurity.

“Some policemen were killed on the road yesterday. The roads from Zamfara to Sokoto, from Kaduna to Sokoto, and from Kano to Sokoto are not safe. I am not advising anybody to travel by road to come. It is very risky.” he warned.

Meanwhile, LEADERSHIP observed a heavy deployment of security operatives across Sokoto metropolis last night.

Scores of policemen and members of the state-backed vigilante group were sighted at strategic junctions, government installations and entry points into the city.

Along the highways, joint teams of soldiers, policemen and operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) mounted checkpoints, subjecting motorists to thorough stop-and-search operations.

A public affairs analyst based in Sokoto, Mr Suleman Ahmad, told LEADERSHIP that despite the anxiety, the capital city remained calm.

“There is no tension. People are going about their normal businesses. The APC held a massive rally yesterday in support of the administration, and now the ADC wants to hold its own tomorrow. That is why the environment is politically charged,” he said.

He corroborated the ADC chairman’s claim that the party’s office had been sealed.

“I spoke with the ADC chairman minutes ago. He said they are yet to decide on the venue because their office has been sealed. We went to the house of Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal for clarification, but no one was willing to provide a clear picture of what is happening. Everything is being kept under wraps until tomorrow,” Ahmad said.

On the safety of inter-state roads, Ahmad said travelling remained a gamble.

“Bandits strike routinely. Yet commuters have no choice but to use the roads daily. When they strike, they kill and go. It is like an accident — you just pray, enter your vehicle and leave your fate to God,” he added.

As of press time, efforts to obtain comments from the Sokoto State Government and the Police Public Relations Officer of the Sokoto State Command proved abortive.

Earlier, the ADC presidential candidate and former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, accused the leadership of the Department of State Services (DSS) of recruiting protesters to disrupt the party’s presidential campaign flag-off in Sokoto.

Atiku made the allegation at a press conference in Abuja ahead of the presidential campaign flag-off.

Addressing journalists, Atiku said what was unfolding in Sokoto went beyond ordinary political competition, describing it as a calculated campaign to frustrate the ADC and deny Nigerians the freedom of choice.

“I address you today with a heavy but resolute heart. What is unfolding in Sokoto is not ordinary political competition. It is a calculated campaign to frustrate the African Democratic Congress, obstruct our campaign and deny Nigerians the freedom to choose,” he said.

He alleged that public facilities that should be accessible to all political parties had been blocked and that logistical support had been withheld, describing the actions as deliberate attempts to deny the ADC a level playing field.

Atiku further alleged that the DSS was behind the mobilisation of protesters to cause disorder.

“More disturbing still, the information available to us is that the leadership of the Department of State Services is recruiting people to stage protests in Sokoto. The objective is to create disorder, give the APC-controlled state government a pretext to impose a curfew and prevent our campaign from taking off as scheduled,” he said.

“We know where some of these protesters are assembled: an office behind Zenith Bank on Koko Road. Trucks are stationed there and dispatched to key points, including the roundabout. These mobilised protesters are causing gridlock. Commuters are being threatened and, in some cases, beaten. Some of the protesters have moved away from the roundabout to find shade.”

The former vice president said the development amounted to political interference by a security agency.

“This is not intelligence work. It is political interference dressed in official uniform. Security agencies exist to protect Nigerians and uphold the law, not to recruit protesters or help a political party manufacture a crisis. I call on every officer involved to stop immediately and return to the constitutional duty of impartial service,” he said.

Atiku accused the Bola Tinubu administration of devoting more energy to weakening credible opposition than to solving national problems, alleging a plot to reduce Nigeria to a one-party state.

“For three and a half years, the Tinubu administration has devoted too much energy to weakening credible opposition and too little to solving the problems facing Nigerians. It has pursued a politics of absorption and intimidation, while drawing former opposition figures into the APC and narrowing the space for political competition. The aim is to reduce Nigeria to a one-party state in all but name,” he said.

He said the government was afraid of the people’s verdict after unleashing a crushing cost-of-living crisis.

He called on Sokoto residents to remain calm and urged security agencies to act impartially.

Meanwhile, a group known as the Arewa Transformational Leaders Forum has petitioned the British High Commission in Abuja over alleged political violence in Sokoto State ahead of the presidential campaign flag-off.

In a petition dated 3 November 2026, and signed by Muhammed Umar, the forum called for diplomatic intervention and accused Governor Ahmed Aliyu’s administration and the state’s All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, of allegedly suppressing opposition participation.

The forum alleged that on Monday, 2 November 2026, barely 48 hours before the presidential campaign flag-off, the Sokoto State Government sealed the ADC campaign office designated as the venue for the event.

The Arewa Transformational Leaders Forum described the action as an abuse of governmental authority for partisan suppression.

“An elected government cannot legitimately close the political space through which others seek a democratic mandate,” it said.

The group further alleged that on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, women participating in a peaceful ADC solidarity procession were attacked and sustained serious injuries.

The forum identified one Aliyu ‘KC’ and his associates, whom it described as well-known political thugs affiliated with the APC, as those responsible for the attack. It demanded an impartial investigation, their arrest and prosecution.

“On 30 October 2026, the convoy of the ADC governorship candidate, His Excellency, Hon. Manir Muhammad Dan’iya, was allegedly attacked by Sokoto State security operatives.”

The forum also raised the alarm over what it described as mysterious and deeply troubling circumstances surrounding the release of Aliyu KC and his associates from prison and their subsequent alleged involvement in attacks.