Dumebi Kachikwu, the 2023 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has denounced the recently unveiled opposition coalition that adopted the ADC as its political platform for the 2027 elections, describing its members as “enemies of Nigeria” and accusing them of attempting to drag the country backwards.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday, Kachikwu criticised the coalition, which includes former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi, and other political heavyweights, as a gathering of “yesterday’s men” whose past leadership failed to move the nation forward.
“They are enemies of Nigeria. They are enemies of progress,” Kachikwu said. “What you saw in that hall were ‘former’ this and ‘former’ that, former Vice President, former governors, former ministers. All these ‘formers’ are taking Nigeria back to its former glory. They’ve never taken us forward.”
Kachikwu argued that the coalition is dominated by political veterans who, in his view, are responsible for the country’s socio-economic woes.
“These same people have ruled Nigeria for the last four decades. Where are we today? A nation where 80 per cent of the population is poor. Now they pretend to be the fire brigade, trying to put out the fire they started,” he said.
He expressed concern over the exclusion of Nigeria’s youth population, who make up the majority, from meaningful political participation, describing the coalition as a “geriatric assembly.”
“Seventy per cent of our population are youths. Where were the youths in that gathering? What we saw was a bunch of geriatrics, seventy per cent of them are above 75 years old, yet they claim they want to rescue Nigeria,” he remarked.
Kachikwu further dismissed the coalition as self-serving rather than issue-driven. “These are political jobbers, career office holders. All they do is sit at home and complain about government. That’s not opposition—that’s self-service,” he added.
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Criticising the group’s adoption of the ADC platform, Kachikwu accused the coalition of attempting to hijack the party through illegitimate means, insisting that the current party leadership lacks the authority to enter into any such agreement.
“The manner in which they came, through the back door, shows you who they are. They are back-door people. People who destroyed Nigeria cannot claim to be the ones to fix it,” he said.
He questioned the legitimacy of the coalition’s organisational claims, noting that Ralph Nwosu, whose resignation as ADC chairman was announced during the coalition’s unveiling, had no valid mandate.
“Anybody who truly wants to join the ADC should know that Ralph Nwosu’s tenure lapsed two years ago. He has no business or authority to enter any coalition on our behalf,” Kachikwu said. “The constitution of my party is clear, you must have been a member for at least two years to hold any office. There’s been no convention to amend that.”
Kachikwu revealed plans to write to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for formal clarification, vowing to exit the party if INEC validates the legitimacy of the new leadership structure announced by the coalition.
“To make things easy for Nigerians, we shall be communicating with INEC. If INEC says that a man who left the party 18 years ago, whose tenure ended two years ago, is now chairman, I will gracefully bow out of the party,” he said.
In an earlier statement on Wednesday, Kachikwu ridiculed the opposition bloc’s announcement, saying he watched “with the greatest amusement” as political veterans claimed control of the ADC. He reiterated that Nigerians are seeking fresh leadership, not recycled figures.
The coalition, which met at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, had formally introduced former Senate President David Mark and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as interim National Chairman and National Secretary of the ADC, respectively.
Also present were key political figures including former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, former Rivers Governor Rotimi Amaechi, Senator Ireti Kingibe, Dele Momodu, and others from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Social Democratic Party (SDP), and Labour Party (LP). The alliance aims to form a formidable front to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 general elections.
