By Eric Elezuo

From every quarter, the tension associated with desire to either consolidate power come 2027 by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) or the quest to wrest power from the present administration, especially by the newly redefined opposition party, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), continue to reverberate, creating unease and subject of discourse across political landscapes.

With opposition politicians raising alarm on a daily basis regarding the intimidation being suffered from the ruling party, many have either decamped to the APC or remained aloof, muffling their own voices for fear of being targeted for attack, victimisation or outright persecution.

This untold uneasy fear among the camps of the opposition has remained tenable until the rebirth of the ADC with major political players and ranking administrators holding sway, and sticking their necks out in one collective effort to ‘rescue Nigeria’.

But that move, which caught the APC unawares, has led to a re-jigging of the strategy, culminating in what the ADC described as victimisation of the opposition by the ruling party.

Consequently, many of the leading figures in the opposition have been hounded either in their businesses or political endeavours. The latest being the former governor of Sokoto State, who doubles as a sitting senator, representing Sokoto South, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

Also a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tambuwal, who was arrested, detained and later released by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has vowed not to be silenced by what he described as intimidation and blackmail.

The EFCC had quizzed Tambuwal and detained him for a night over alleged misappropriation of N189bn during his tenure as governor, a move the opposition African Democratic Congress described as a political witch-hunt aimed at weakening opposition forces ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Returning to Sokoto just before the weekend to a hero’s welcome from thousands of supporters, Tambuwal had addressed a cheering crowd at his residence, pledging to continue the fight for “equitable and democratic governance” in the state.

“I cannot be intimidated or blackmailed. I believe I shall be vindicated, and victory shall be ours,” he declared, drawing loud chants of solidarity from his supporters.

The full statement of the former governor is presented as follows:

APC IS ANTI PEOPLE, I CANNOT BE INTIMIDATED

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen. Lend me your ears. I know that you have been following developments in the last one week. But before I go into that, let me thank Allah (SWT) for giving me the place, the strength, the health and enablement to arrive home to this receptive

I was first invited by the EFCC and went there voluntarily, on my own volition without being forced, on the 6th of August. That was my first visit to the EFCC. I was interrogated. At sometime they let me go back home with a view of coming back on Monday, 11th of August. I went back and was further interrogated. I requested that I should be allowed to go back home until another time so that we could continue. I was told by the operatives interviewing me that I need to get someone or some people to get me on bail. I told them to go back and tell the Chairman of the EFCC that I was the Speaker of Federal House of Representatives for four years; that I served the people of Sokoto State for an uninterrupted period of eight years; and that now as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; and also as a Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFR), I should be allowed my personal recognition. They said that no, the Chairman has declined; that I must bring two directors from the Federal Civil Service, who must get letters of introduction from their employers, and some other conditions for me to be granted bail. This was around 5-6 pm. My lawyer, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), appealed that liberal conditions for the bail should be given. They refused. I was taken to cell A23, where I rested till the following morning. Of course, by the grace of God and prayers the conditions of bail were met and I was allowed to go.

Now. Why now? Why at this moment. When the current government in Sokoto constituted a Kangaroo Commission of Inquiry that couldn’t work; and by the grace of Allah it will not work, because we know what we did for the people of Sokoto State; and the people here are the living witnesses; that there are basis for comparison between the government we handed over to and our own government. But that is not the issue.

We have been involved in the process of bringing everyone together, because there are two paradigms in Nigeria today: those in government today; and those of the people of Nigeria. I and my colleagues here chose to be with the people that are working against sustaining the current bad situation in Nigeria. Once you join APC, whatever your sins are will be forgiven. Now, I want to ask you a question: do you want our sins to be forgiven so that we can join APC? Do you want us to continue to work for the coalition?

I’m going to say what they don’t want to hear: What they failed to realize is that I cannot be intimidated. And, no one can tarnish my record: from my service in the House of Representatives in 2006, when I served as Minority Leader, 2007 when I served as Deputy Chief Whip to 2011 when I served as Speaker; and Governor of this state up to 2023, I believe we have done well in the service of this country.

Therefore, I will take on anybody who wants to tarnish my image. The process is there. Whatever it is, I believe that by the grace of God, victory shall be ours. At the end of the day, we shall be independent. Let me assure you. I remain resolved and resolute and unshaken by this near attempt to coerce, blackmail and intimidate.

We remain committed to the process of democracy; and ensuring that peoples’ votes count in Nigeria, particularly, insha Allah, in 2027. What they are working towards is to create an impression of invisibility: that they cannot be beaten. Their policies are anti-people. They have no compassion. They have no feelings. What is going on in Sokoto East, what is happening in North West, North East, North Central and South South; South West and South East States

Is Bola Tinubu’s administration considering the federal character in Nigeria today; in terms of giving opportunities to Nigerians to serve? In terms of projects? Nigerians are not fools. In any case, the election was rigged. So, we will not, by the grace of God, allow that to happen again. We’re committed to democratic ethos and the democratic process. We will join forces to gather tendencies in Nigeria, to make sure, by the grace of God, in 2027, we end this misrule and misgovernance over our country.

It would be recalled that earlier in July, shortly after its formation, the coalition had raised alarm of the government’s plan to clampdown on it leaders and members across the country with spurious accusations.

In a statement by the Interim National Publicity Secretary of ADC and Opposition Coalition, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the group responded to a tweet by presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, who alleged a sinister plot to overthrow the Tinubu administration, saying, “Just two years after Tinubu began implementing the reforms, the haters of Nigeria’s progress are banding together to overthrow an administration that has been the most focused, most transformative in our history.”

The ADC spokesperson, who described the tweet as reckless and malicious, further noted that it revealed an imminent plot to clamp down on opposition leaders, ahead 2027 general elections.

He warned that “such reckless and unsubstantiated claim signals a broader campaign of intimidation and repression against political opposition leaders by the Tinubu administration.”

The full statement reads: “Bayo Onanuga’s tweet is a textbook example of a political dog whistle. The APC-led federal government appears to be constructing a false narrative that is designed to justify a potential clamp down on dissent, and to criminalise legitimate opposition activity under the guise of national security.

“The ADC is not interested in truncating democracy; we are solely committed to saving the nation from the irredeemable incompetence of this government. And the only means available to us is the democratic means. We are not soldiers, we are politicians. We don’t have bullets; we only have the ballots. When the time comes, we will only present our solutions and an alternative vision of the future to the Nigerian people and leave them to make their choice.

“We are left to wonder why the APC government is so jittery that it is so eager to betray its own heritage. APC is the first opposition party to come to power in Nigeria. It is, therefore, a great wonder that the same party now appears to find it strange that there is an opposition at all.

“We, therefore, call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to promptly caution his aides from further baseless but dangerous allegations that have the potential to heat up the system even two years ahead of the next election. This manner of crying wolf when there is none does not make the president look good and only betrays a sense of panic.

“We also call on the Nigerian people to be vigilant and discerning, and to reject the underhanded tactics being deployed to delegitimise the opposition and silence alternative voices. The health of our democracy depends on a free, open, and competitive political environment.

“Finally, we urge the international community, democratic governments all over the world, international observers, and human rights organisations, to closely monitor the unfolding political environment in Nigeria. We call on them to hold the Tinubu administration accountable for any actions that undermine democratic freedoms or violate the political rights of Nigerian citizens.

“The ADC remains committed to building a better Nigeria, through peace, participation, and the power of the people.”

The Nigerian political space has gathered momentum ever since the announcement of the opposition coalition group, which later adopted the ADC as its political platform for the 2027 general election. The group is led by a former Senate President, David Mark, with former governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola as the National Secretary.

So far, every member of the coalition has received tremendous approval from their supporters across their various regions, signaling what may be a landmark challenge of Tinubu’s APC in the forthcoming elections.