Tinubu’s Campaign Council Harbours Corruption Suspects, Says ADC

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s emerging 2027 campaign council of providing a “rehabilitation centre” for individuals facing unresolved corruption allegations.

The party also described the 2027 general election as a referendum on the performance of the Tinubu administration over the past three years.

In a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC questioned the inclusion of former Humanitarian Affairs Minister, Betta Edu, and former Chairman of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Ngozi Olejeme, in the campaign council.

The party asked the Federal Government to disclose whether corruption-related cases involving the two former officials had been resolved, or whether their inclusion was a way of pardoning officials accused of corruption because of their political affiliation.

The ADC said the composition of the council, which it described as a political task team, instead appeared to be a “rehabilitation system for individuals carrying unresolved questions of corruption and public accountability.”

The party specifically cited Edu, who was suspended by President Tinubu in January 2024 following controversy surrounding an alleged attempt to transfer N585 million in public funds into a private account.

It also cited Olejeme, who has faced prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged financial misconduct.

The ADC asked the government to explain the status of the cases involving the two women and other members of the campaign council facing corruption allegations.

“One important question that the inclusion of these individuals provokes is what happened to the cases involving these individuals,” the party said.

“If they have been cleared, the government should show how and when and by whom they were cleared.”

The opposition party further alleged that investigations into financial crimes under the present administration had in some cases disappeared, only for individuals facing allegations to later re-emerge in political or official positions.

It said corruption allegations appeared to have acquired “an expiry date” under the administration, alleging that politically useful individuals were no longer required to provide answers to previous allegations.

The ADC maintained that the 2027 election would ultimately be a judgment on Tinubu’s record in office.

“The President may assemble his old friends and political allies, including those carrying unresolved corruption questions, but all of their collective brooms cannot sweep away the grave pains they have brought on the Nigerian people,” it said.

The party accused the administration of failing to address the cost-of-living crisis and poverty, while alleging that politically connected individuals continued to live in opulence.

It said Nigerians had been asked to make sacrifices for three years while those connected to government allegedly continued to benefit from public resources.

“The time for reckoning has come,” the party declared.

The ADC also restated its support for Atiku Abubakar’s proposal to subsidise fuel production as a means of reducing petrol prices and the wider cost of living.

It said the proposal was targeted, capped, budgeted and independently audited, dismissing criticism that the country could not afford such an intervention.

According to the party, the real question was whether the government could afford to continue allowing struggling families to bear the burden of economic hardship.

“Our proposal is straightforward: every naira must be traceable and every barrel accounted for,” the ADC said.

It challenged the Tinubu administration to account for what it described as the cost of its policies, alleging that government had tolerated waste and profligacy.