Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has launched a scathing attack on opposition politicians who recently took control of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), dismissing them as a “gang of failed and expired politicians” with no credible solutions for Nigeria’s challenges.
At his monthly press briefing on Thursday, Wike criticised key coalition figures, questioning their records and describing their new alliance as opportunistic.
The opposition coalition leaders adopted and unveiled ADC on Wednesday as their platform to wrest power from President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
The revived party is led by former Senate President Senator David Mark, with former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the national secretary.
The coalition members consist of leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), and opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Labour Party. While APC has remained stable, PDP and Labour Party have been embroiled in crises since the 2023 presidential election.
Some ADC leaders, like David Mark, former Rivers State Governor Chibuike Amaechi, and former Justice Minister Abubakar Malami, have resigned from their membership in their former parties – the PDP and APC, respectively.
However, Peter Obi’s Labour Party membership became contentious yesterday as both factions clashed over whether their 2023 presidential candidate should leave the party within 48 hours.
Similarly, Dumebi Kachikwu, the former presidential candidate of ADC, and some aggrieved party members have protested the coalition’s takeover of the party.
Kachikwu, who flew the party’s presidential flag in 2023, described the coalition leaders as yesterday’s men who, according to him, Nigerians are tired of.
He also claimed that the coalition leaders are not interested in retaining power in the South and are bent on producing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s candidate in 2027.
Wike hits ADC leaders
The FCT minister aimed particularly at former Senate President David Mark, who now chairs the ADC, challenging his recent declaration that the coalition seeks to rescue Nigeria.
“I heard David Mark say they want to rescue Nigeria and that Nigerians are unhappy. But this same man was Senate President for eight years. Were Nigerians happy then?
“There was no single project in Otukpo, his hometown. Not one. He was flying around in a helicopter while his people had nothing. Nigerians weren’t angry then, but suddenly they are angry now?”
He further ridiculed Mark’s political influence, noting, “As PDP leader in his state, he couldn’t even deliver his constituency. His daughter won a House of Representatives seat under the APC while he lost. What does that tell you?”
Wike also targeted former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi, accusing him of worsening Nigeria’s debt burden.
“Amaechi was a minister for eight years. He took massive Chinese loans and left Nigeria heavily indebted. Were Nigerians happy then?” he asked.
On ex-Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika’s failed national carrier project, Wike said, “I saw Sirika in this coalition. What happened to Air Nigeria? Billions spent, yet nothing to show. Nigerians were happy with that?”
The FCT minister saved some of his harshest words for former Attorney-General Abubakar Malami, calling his recent statements shameful.
“Malami was AGF for eight years. What did he do to improve security? Now he’s talking as if he wasn’t part of the problem,” Wike said.
Wike didn’t spare former Sokoto Governor Aminu Tambuwal, questioning his records as a legislator and executive.
“Tambuwal was Speaker for four years, then governor for eight. What did he achieve? What did he do to make Nigerians less angry?” he demanded.
The FCT minister also dismissed former Sports Minister Bolaji Abdullahi’s move to the ADC as politically motivated.
“Abdullahi only joined ADC because he fell out with his godfather, Bukola Saraki. That’s not leadership; that’s desperation,” Wike said.
Despite his fierce criticism of the ADC coalition, Wike acknowledged that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) remains the only opposition party capable of challenging President Bola Tinubu, if it resolves its internal divisions.
“The only party today that can still credibly challenge Tinubu is the PDP—but only if we put our house in order,” he stated.
Wike dismissed the ADC takeover as a gathering of “recycled politicians who failed Nigerians when they had power.”
“They were happy when they were in government, but now that they’re out, suddenly Nigeria needs ‘rescuing.’ Nigerians are not fools,” he declared.
The ADC coalition, which includes several prominent defectors from the PDP and APC, has positioned itself as a significant opposition force ahead of the next election cycle.
Stop Using Nigerians For Selfish Politics, Wike Warns Opposition Coalition
Nyesom Wike further accused the opposition coalition leaders of exploiting national discontent for personal political gains.
The minister demanded accountability from coalition members, insisting their past performance in government should disqualify them from posing as national saviours.
“Because you have issues with someone, you say Nigerians are angry, and then you go ahead and form a coalition. Please, let’s take Nigeria’s issues seriously. I challenge all of them to show their scorecards. What did they do to better the country when they were at the helm of affairs?” he stated.
Addressing the ongoing teachers’ strike in the FCT, Wike clarified his office’s limitations regarding the N18 billion arrears owed to the educators.
“These monies aren’t to be paid by the FCT Administration but by the area councils,” he explained, detailing his intervention measures, including withholding 10 per cent of internally generated revenue from the councils.
“We have taken several actions, but there’s only so much we can do when the debt reaches N18 billion,” Wike stated, acknowledging the complexity of resolving the labour dispute within the FCT’s governance structure.
ADC Coalition A Desperate Power Grab – Presidency
Similarly, the Presidency has dismissed the ADC adoption by opposition leaders as a desperate attempt to seize power, saying they are devoid of ideology, structure, or national purpose.
Reacting to the alliance in a statement posted on his verified X handle (@SundayDareSD), Sunday Dare, the special adviser to the president on media and public communications, described the coalition as a “desperate power grab” rooted in personal ambition rather than any legitimate grievance or patriotic cause.
“There is no injustice to redress—only avaricious ambition to satisfy,” Dare wrote, as he cautioned Nigerians against comparing the coalition to the 2013 merger that birthed the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and unseated the incumbent president as the time, Dr Goodluck Jonathan.
According to the presidential aide, the opposition front lacks the credibility, unity, and political structure that defined APC’s emergence.
He noted that its promoters are driven not by collective interest but by personal desperation for relevance and power.
“At the heart of this coalition is a serial election loser, clutching at what he sees as his last shot at the presidency,” Dare said, without naming names. “Unlike Tinubu, he entered the coalition alone, without the backing of his state governor, his region, or any meaningful political structure. His ambition is personal, not patriotic.”
Dare emphasised that the 2013 APC merger was formed in response to widespread dissatisfaction with the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and was led by individuals willing to sacrifice personal ambitions for the greater good.
Dare recalled how President Bola Tinubu, then a national opposition leader, shelved his presidential aspirations and helped forge a formidable alliance that brought together major political blocs under one party.
“In 2013, the merger that birthed the APC was driven by selflessness, national interest, and strategic discipline. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, despite commanding the loyalty of several sitting governors, chose to wait. He bided his time, played the long game, and focused on building a viable political platform,” he stated.
Dare also credited APC’s success to Muhammadu Buhari’s involvement, describing the former president as a unifying figure with proven grassroots support and integrity that inspired trust nationwide.
“No one in this coalition commands that kind of loyalty or trust. Not one of them could genuinely unite a ward, let alone a country,” Dare argued.
He further pointed out that the formation of the APC was driven by genuine issues such as the perceived marginalisation of specific regions and the desire to end what many considered 16 years of PDP misgovernance.
In contrast, Dare accused the current opposition coalition of having no moral or political justification, insisting that the presidency is already zoned to a region that “is rightfully due,” and will remain so until 2031.
“This new coalition? It’s purely opportunistic. The presidency already rests with the region rightfully due. And that’s where it will be till 2031,” Dare declared.
Kachukwu Accuses Coalition Leaders Of Hijacking Party For Selfish Gains
The new entrants into the African Democratic Congress (ADC) have also received flak from within the party,
The 2023 presidential candidate of the ADC, Dumebi Kachikwu, has accused the promoters of the newly formed ADC-led opposition coalition of hijacking the party for selfish gains.
Kachukwu made the statement while speaking to newsmen yesterday in Abuja.
He described the coalition involving top opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi, and former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai, as a “backdoor plot” to install another northern candidate for the 2027 elections.
He claimed that the coalition was carefully crafted from inception to hand over the 2027 presidential ticket to Atiku Abubakar, describing such ambition as a betrayal of Nigeria’s power rotation principles.
“Let the coalition today boldly pronounce that the 2027 presidential candidate will come from the South. If they do that, we will welcome them through the front door,” he said.
He also accused the coalition leaders of orchestrating a hostile takeover of the ADC, using influential political names to sideline grassroots party members and established structures.
“These people attend the same weddings, meetings, and parties. They are old friends. They are not here to rescue Nigeria; they are enemies of progress. We are all victims of a failed system, and these same actors cannot be the ones to save us. Coalition was designed to produce Atiku as the presidential candidate,” he said.
Coalition Will Respect Power Rotation Principle In 2027 – Amaechi
But, as if to debunk Kachikwu’s claim, former governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, said the coalition has to ensure that power remains in the south in keeping with the power rotation agreement.
Amaechi, a guest on Politics Today, a Channels TV programme yesterday, said the power has to remain in the south in 2027.
Although he was elusive about his ambition, he maintained that the quest for power shift to the south will be upheld.
You are jittery about us, ADC spokesman replies Wike
However, the ADC said Wike’s reaction to the new opposition movement reflected a mortal fear of the threat the coalition’s successful unveiling poses to the government he serves.
Spokesman of the coalition movement, Mal. Bolaji Abdullahi, in a statement, said, “If the minister and the government he serves had kept their promises to the Nigerian people, the coalition movement would not have been necessary, and he would not have needed to be so jittery.
“If Minister Wike had paid the salaries of primary school teachers who have been on strike for several months and if he had not treated FCT workers with so much contempt, while he goes about commissioning white elephant projects running into billions of Naira, he would have not need to be afraid of the coalition.”
Reacting to Wike’s claim that the coalition leaders are driven only by grievances, the ADC spokesman said, “If we have any grievances, it is the way the government he is a part of has driven the majority of Nigerians into poverty and misery.
“We are aggrieved to see children of the poor unable to get an education because the government cannot pay their teachers’ salaries. We are aggrieved to watch the growing insecurity he superintends in the FCT. We are aggrieved that Minister Wike has allowed himself to be used by the government he serves to destroy one of the most powerful political parties in Africa, the PDP.”
Abdullahi insisted that the coalition movement belonged to the Nigerian people who had been promised renewed hope, but have been served renewed hopelessness.
“Therefore, no amount of tirade against the coalition’s leaders could stem the tide of this popular movement,” he concluded.
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