By Emmanuel Thomas l Monday, Sept 28, 2026
ABUJA — The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has strongly refuted claims by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) that it received defecting House of Assembly candidates from four northern states, describing the development as “wishful thinking and a figment of imagination.”
In a press statement issued on September 28, 2026, ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, alleged that the APC assembled “random individuals” at its national secretariat and falsely conferred ADC credentials on them to create a misleading narrative of political dominance.
The controversy follows reported receptions hosted at the ruling party’s national headquarters, where individuals were presented as former ADC lawmakers and House of Assembly candidates from Jigawa, Plateau, Taraba, and Zamfara states switching allegiance to the APC.
Countering the claims, the ADC spokesperson challenged the leadership of the ruling party to present concrete proof of the supposed defectors’ party records.
“The APC cannot assemble random individuals at its secretariat, confer imaginary ADC credentials on them, and then announce their defection,” Abdullahi stated. “While the APC Chairman is welcome to receive visitors, he should stop introducing them to Nigerians as people they are not. These people are not our candidates.”
Abdullahi further dismissed assertions that the alleged defectors were drawn to the governing party due to a “remarkable transformation” of Northern Nigeria under the current administration.
He criticized the administration’s economic track record, arguing that public relations stunts do not alleviate the hardship faced by citizens.
“Having invented ADC credentials for its guests, the APC has supplied an equally imaginative account of its performance over the past few years,” Abdullahi said. “The APC should explain how these fake photo-ops bring down food prices, protect Nigeria’s communities, or help struggling families pay their bills. Nigerians are asking for evidence of better lives; the APC is manufacturing photographs and congratulating itself.”
ADC Throws Down Challenge
The opposition party threw down a challenge to the APC leadership to clarify the official party standing of the paraded individuals before claiming political victories.
“The APC should state the ADC offices these individuals supposedly held, the constituencies they represented as our candidates, and when they held those positions,” Abdullahi added. “The APC should enjoy its photographs and spare Nigerians this unnecessary fiction.”
Political defections and high-profile receptions at national party secretariats remain standard features of Nigerian politics, particularly as major parties seek to signal momentum ahead of upcoming electoral cycles.
However, claims of “staged defections” or “fake candidates” frequently surface during heated political contests. Opposition parties often accuse the ruling APC of using orchestrated defections to project a false narrative of widespread support across the geopolitical zones, while the ruling party routinely insists its policies and developmental footprints attract genuine political realignment from rival camps.
By demanding specific constituency and registration records for the individuals presented, the ADC aims to shift the narrative back to economic performance and security concerns across Northern Nigeria.
