*ADC: Fear of intimidation preventing governors from joining opposition coalition

*David Mark: North is bleeding, only ADC can tackle challenges bedeviling the region 

*Votes must count in 2027, says Babachir Lawal

Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, has urged Nigerians to reject the new opposition coalition, alleging that the political party, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), is seeking to destroy the country.
Wike’s allegation is coming as the Interim National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, stated that the fear of intimidation by the administration of President Bola Tinubu prevented state governors from joining the coalition.
Also, the Interim National Chairman of the party, Senator David Mark, has raised the alarm that Northern Nigeria is bleeding, pointing out that his party is the only platform that can address the avalanche of challenges bedeviling the region if voted into power.

Meanwhile, a chieftain of the ADC and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has said that votes will decide the winners of the next elections.
Wike spoke yesterday at the 50th anniversary and 35th convocation of the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
 At the convocation, the minister was conferred with an honorary Doctor of Science degree in Political Science, alongside Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu; former Governor of Katsina State, Aminu Bello Masari, and Governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Fintri, who were also honoured at the event.

 Speaking immediately after the conferment, the former governor of Rivers State mocked the political coalition, stressing that they are aggrieved and have nothing to offer the country.
He described them as ‘mafias’ who move around political parties without a clue of what they want or can offer to the nation.
Wike recalled that on assumption of office, President Bola Tinubu’s administration met a decaying system, assuring that the government is working tirelessly to restore the system.

 “We must admit that the President met a dire socio-economic situation upon assumption of office. This challenging situation requires painful decisions if the country must survive, recover, and make progress again.
“These decisions have been taken as expected of a genuinely bold and visionary leader. The resultant consequences may not in some instances be immediately palatable, but be assured that joy is inevitably coming.”
Wike argued that “these men and women who co-live under the banner of the so-called coalition are propelling, seeking political relevance. If you interrogate their profiles, you will see that they have been in office for almost all their lives, but they have nothing concrete to show as achievements in building an enduring nation.

 “In only two years of this administration, they are aggregating to destroy rather than build, rather than reconstruct our hitherto battered country, which most of them contributed to the willful destruction of our politics and our economy, which they orchestrated in their respective tenure in office,” Wike explained.
 Wike, however, stated: “We know these Mafias and you are enjoined to reject them and their patriotic drumbeat of division and propaganda”.

Speaking further, Wike gave reasons for supporting the University of Port Harcourt as a governor and a minister.
In his remarks,  the Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas(rtd), reiterated the state government’s unwavering commitment to delivering quality education at all levels, emphasising that no child will be left behind or denied the opportunity for academic advancement.
Also speaking, the Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof Owunari Georgewill, expressed his joy in the institution’s 50-year journey of academic excellence and service to the nation since its establishment in 1975.
 He announced that, as part of the anniversary celebration, the university is conducting its 35th combined convocation ceremony, conferring a total of 13,861 degrees.
This includes 9,788 Bachelor’s degrees, 2,131 master’s degrees, 208 postgraduate diplomas, and 934 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).

ADC: Fear of Intimidation Preventing Governors from Joining Opposition Coalition

The Interim National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Abdullahi, who spoke yesterday during the third Expanded Meeting of the National Political Consultative Group (North), held in Abuja, described the alleged act of intimidation of governors as a conspiracy against the Nigerian people.
He stated, “We don’t need to particularly target any serving governor. We know that no serving governor will want to come to us now because of the kind of intimidation that they are facing.
“We know what they are doing to them. Some of them who cannot jump to their party (APC) are saying we are endorsing their presidential candidate (President Tinubu). No problem.
“But what you are seeing is a conspiracy against the Nigerian people. The ADC welcomes everybody, but we are convinced that we are a movement that has the backing of the majority of Nigerians who are not happy with the direction this country is going.

The ADC’s interim National Publicity Secretary stated that the party was not established to serve anyone’s ambition and emphasized that it remains free from any form of hijack.
Former president, Senator Mark, who also spoke at the event, which was attended by ADC members and supporters across the country, while delivering a keynote address on the theme, “Unity, and social cohesion as panacea to the challenges facing Northern Nigeria”, said the North was confronted with deep-seated challenges of insecurity, poverty, ethnic, religious tensions, political fragmentation, social and economic stagnation.

He said, “These challenges did not develop overnight nor will they disappear until we resolve to take deliberate, collective, and decisive action. We must first admit that we are the architects of our problems; we must stop the blame game if we truly and genuinely want to find a lasting solution.
 “Division has cost us progress, while indifference and inaction have continued to deepen our division. If we are to overcome our present travails, we must return to the principles of justice, equity, mutual respect, and shared purpose that once made Northern Nigeria a beacon of hope, peace, unity, and development.

“The time for lamentation is over. The North is bleeding profusely, and we are the only ones who can heal it. Let us commit today to reject hate speech and divisive politics, invest in unifying projects—education, healthcare, and infrastructure, hold each other accountable for our actions and inactions, and shake hands across the divide and restore our bond of brotherhood.”

Votes Must Count in 2027, Babachir Lawal Insists

 Also speaking on the sidelines of the event, the former SGF, Lawal, insisted that votes must count in the 2027 general election.
”Votes will count. And we are going to make sure that votes do count. In this election, votes will count.
”I tell you, forget about this fear that votes will not count. APC is a party of Nigerians. ADC is one. Whatever techniques, whatever malicious activity they throw at us, we’ll counter them effectively. And we’ll counter and defeat them at it,” he explained.

On the purpose and objectives of the Northern Political Consultative Group has started preparing solutions for the 2027 general election, adding, ”we will elect only somebody who has the interest of the North at heart and who will address the challenges facing the North because as it is, we believe that this government has no interest in solving problems confronting the North—be it infrastructure, be it peace, be it security.

On the resolutions of the meeting, he said: ”Well, the resolution is that we should go out and continue to organise northerners, continue to pass on the messages that we have spoken here today so that our people from top to bottom will be united and take a single position in the coming election.”